Subject 384
by X-Xepher-X
Summary: She was supposed to be just another experiment, another number. Then something went wrong. She escaped with a gift, a dangerous curse that only hurt the ones she loved. Years later, she back on the run, trying to escape the monsters in her head. She thought she was the only one who had to face these kinds of demons, then she met the man whose brain was stuck in a blender. Post AoU
1. Prolodge

**11 Years ago**

 _"еще раз" A man in a lab coat commanded_

 _ **"Again"**_

 _Pain._

 _It was the only thing she could comprehend. Everything that surrounded her; the scientist's, the room, that horrid electrical machine was only a figment of her imagination. Pain was the hard, horrible reality that made her scream out with all her might._

 _The little, plastic, suction cups streamed the electricity all around her body. The torn, leather restraints were the only thing that kept her from falling on the floor and twitching all around like a fish out of water. But it also kept her from smashing her head against the wall over and over again, crying for death until the pain stopped._

 _"пожалуйста! Стоп! Больно!" She cried through the thick stream of tears erupting from her eyes._

 _ **"Please! Stop! It Hurts!"**_

 _Just when she felt the pain leaving her body, another wave sent her screaming for her life._

 _"еще раз" He said once again in a monotone voice, barely lifting his eyes from his clipboard_

 _ **"Again"**_

 _Her body felt like it was on fire. Every molecule of her body felt like it was being ripped apart, then shoved back together again, then once again torn apart. Her brain felt like it was being shredded apart, little pieces of flesh were just floating around in her head. It was like it was being turned into a thick, pink soup with little fleshy parts floating around, being bounced around as she banged her head against the lab table. It was an endless cycle that only grew more painful with each second._

 _Don't forget it, Don't forget it, She tried to scream into her mind, over her loud, piercing cries that no one bothered to listen to. She was a prisoner to her pain, a thing she couldn't escape until her captors wanted the her pain to cease. Or if she died of it._

 _"еще раз"_

 _ **"Again"**_

 _Her lifeless, dark sunken eyes bulged from their sockets as she gave a high pitched scream, enough to shatter glass. Her ratty, dirty long hair flew into her sweat coated face as she slammed her head against the metal table, trying to stop the pain within her head. Her thin, bony, yellow, bony fingers clenched onto the sharp edge of the table, slicing through her skin. A thick river of gooey, red blood flowed from her frail finger, down the leg of the table, onto the stained concrete floor._

 **Don't forget it, Don't forget it...**

 _She had no idea until she would just give out, that point when her body couldn't handle the pain and would shut itself down. Until she faced death in the eye, and death invited her to say. Until she died, just like any other subject did._

 _"еще раз"_

 _ **"Again"**_

 **Don't for….**

 _Her body couldn't handle one more ounce of pain. Volts of electricity tried to ram themselves through her skin and into her body, but it was like her body wouldn't allow it. But then they did._

 _It was like she was being released, being freed; the pain didn't cease, but she felt like her mind wasn't mush. Her mind was floating on a white, puffy cloud. She expected a white glow to fill her vision and lift her away from her pain._

 _She saw red._

 _Everything else was a complete and utter blur. One minutes she was wrapped up screaming, with her throat on fire. The next she was running for her life in thick rain._

 _Her bare, thin legs sloshed through the thick mud, trying to run as fast as she could, for her life. Her wide, bloodshot eyes fearfully looked behind her, spotting anyone near her._

 _She knew they were after her, she just didn't know where. She heard screams and shouts full the thick, dark forest that surrounded her. She didn't know if she could be free, even if she escaped these terrible men._

 _Her foot suddenly caught on a thick tree root, causing her to fall straight into the mud. Her body slid across the wet dirt, and crashed into a tree trunk. She slowly lifted her mud soaked face and hair from her demise, and dragged herself behind the tree trunk._

 **Don't forget...remember it…** _She thought, as she took big gulps of the forest air, catching her breath._

 **Remember...Remember my name...My name is Rosalind…**

 **Rosalind Alvarez.**

* * *

 **So, hey! This is my first OC Avengers based fan fic, so I hope people like it too! I've written, or I should say writing, an Avengers fan fic right now so, check it out for your interested. I've also written other OC fan fics too, but I've been itching to do one for the Avengers...so I'm here.**

 **If you didn't get it already, this is an OC/Bucky fic, but IS NOT a Romance, it's a friendship fic(BROSHIP IT).**

 **-One, cause I suck at romance(I've ATTEMPTED one, but romance is not my middle name)**

 **-Two, Bucky needs a friend(He really has only Steve, maybe Sam in CACW?...He just really needs a friend...)**

 **So, it's post AoU, and starts literally just a few days after the events with Ultron and how he tried to destroy the earth by...basically ramming the earth back into itself(Those nuclear codes would have been REALLY handy for Ultron, but that's another story...) and will lead into the events of CACW, but with a twist.**

 **Anyways, enough rambling! Hope you follow and review! Till Then!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	2. Nowhere(The hell am I?) Girl

**Present**

 _...And all the girls dreamed that they'd be your partner_

 _They'd be your partner, and_

 _You're so vain_

 _You probably think this song is about you_

 _You're so vain,_

 _I'll bet you think this song is about you_

 _Don't you?_

The girl around her mid-twenties snapped her fingers carefully at the beat of the slow and easy tune that blasted in her ears. Her stride down the sidewalk also followed the music, as though it was her guide to walk. She was even humming it below her breath, underneath a small grin. It was like today was the best day of her life, minus the cheesy squeals and jumping up and down like a crazed schoolgirl.

Or at least until she tripped over a crack on the sidewalk and fell flat on her face.

 _Dammit..._

She replied to the hard, cold ground with a half-lidded expression. With a deep sigh, she picked herself right back up. She popped her earphones back into her ear with a brown, leather fingerless glove on her right hand. She brushed her dark brown hair away from her face, revealing her clear, light brown eyes. Her hair was long and wavy, and reached down down just below her shoulder blades. Long bangs sat around her face, stretching to her chin, and swept to the left side of her forehead.

The humid, D.C sun beat down on her light tan skin, causing her to sweat like she was locked up in some kind of sweat box. Although her face made one with the ground, it didn't ruin her unusually happy mood. She simply shrugged it off, and kept on walking. Her strut down the street didn't have much of the confident stride like before, but she still hummed the catchy tune. She liked the song that played through her ears, even if it wasn't exactly the happiest song in the world. Hell, it was a breakup song.

She made her way up a flight of steps, and faced a large door that stood tall above her. She pulled out a set of keys from her pocket and jammed it into the keyhole.

"Hey, I'm home!" She yelled out, as she cracked open the door. With no answer, she furrowed her brow and set her bag down on the floor.

"Cliff?" She called out "Cliiiiiffff?" She turned the corner, and scoffed.

On a couch in the middle of the room sat a tall, skinny man, whose feet were lazily rested on a coffee table. On his lap, a large laptop sat, connected to a hefty pair of earphones that were snuggled tightly against his head.

He looked to be mid-twenties. He had short, dark red Irish hair with tiny, choppy bangs over his forehead. A short, stubbly beard and mustache grew around his face, as though he forgot to shave for a week. He had dark blue eyes that always seemed to be glued to his computer.

"Hey Cliff! Cliff?" The dark brown haired girl called out once again, but found he didn't twitch one bit in reaction. She gave an exasperated sigh, and dragged herself to her friend.

"Cliff?!" She hissed into his ear, glaring at the oblivious man and his computer. After a few seconds of quiet and ignorance, she simply ran out of patience, and gave up.

"Yo ding-dong!" She shouted, and smacked him on the side of the head. He jumped up in total surprise, causing his headphones to slide to his neck. He squinted his eyes and rubbed his head in pain.

"Ow..." Cliff groaned "You didn't have to slap me in the head, you know, Rosa..."

She rolled her eyes "Oh come on, you're fine"

"Yeah, I'm gonna have a fine hell of a headache have now because of you" He snapped back, as he still rubbed his head. Rosa shot him a playful smirk, but he, still in pain shot a glare with razor sharp vision. She raised her hands innocently in the air, as though she couldn't hurt a fly, and walked out of the room.

"Only my family should have the right to slap me..." Cliff muttered.

"What family?" She said, rolling her eyes at his obviously wrong question .

"Exactly!" He shouted "I should be untouchable!"

A snort escaped the other room. Rosa rolled her eyes once more as she entered the living room with a bottle of aspirin and a bottle of water.

"I've known you for 10 years, ever since we met in that foster home. So, unless you have a 'mythical' long lost brother who was shipped off to another dimension, I'm your family. Here, catch" She pointed to herself, then threw the bottle of water and aspirin at her friend.

"Thanks" He twisted the bottle of the aspirin off "It could be possible, I'm just saying"

She sighed "I think that's the worst part..."

Ever since the Avengers emerged, the world took another look at itself. It seemed that at least once a year their was bound to be some world ending catastrophic episode. People in one way felt safer thanks to these powered people, but at the same time, felt more vulnerable. It's like people, villains, are challenging these Avengers to see their true strength. New worlds and dimensions seemed to have popped out of nowhere. Things from folklore and stories were suddenly true and considered history. The world became a smaller place.

Cliff simply shrugged "It's not that bad, I mean we got a damn god protecting us now. And those other people. Didn't you hear about..." He snapped his fingers, and glanced up to the ceiling in thought "What was that country..."

"Sokovia?"

His eyes lit up like a Christmas tree "Yeah! They saved our asses. Without them, humanity would be, well, dead"

"I guess..." She furrowed her brows. Yeah, they might have basically saved the entire world, but what Rosa noticed that since these Avengers came together, humanity was basically in more danger. Just 3 years ago, New York was invaded by aliens. 2 years ago, that crazy terrorist group, lead by a guy called the Mandarin, was killing off people like they were scratching off lotto tickets. 1 year ago, SHIELD, or really HYDRA, tried to destroy millions of people to rule the world. And only a few days ago, the earth almost became toast thanks to a giant flying chunk of land.

What was next? A sad and lonely guy trying to take over the world by blowing it to the next dimension? Just to fill his tiny ego?

Cliff poured a few pills into his hand and gulped them down "Anyways, what's up with you?"

Rosa sent him a blank stare, like he was speaking a foreign language "Huh?"

"You look like the poster child for joy and happiness. What happened?"

"I do not!"

He snorted "Happy is pouring out of you, like our creepy foster caretaker who couldn't stop smiling all the time"

"Yeah, that was kinda odd..." She thought back to a lady in her 40's that had a huge smile that looked like it was stitched into place. Even when one of the kids accidentally spilled juice on her white shirt, her wide smile didn't even twitch.

She smirked, then collapsed on the couch next to her redheaded friend "After serving at that diner whose name I'll never remember, I finally got promoted!"

He replied with a grin "Great for you. What does the raise look like?"

"A dollar!" She shouted in a overexcited voice, way more than she should for just a dollar

"That's great. By the end of the week you'll have enough extra money buy a burrito" he joked.

She frowned and crossed her arms "Like what you do is better..." She curiously leaned into his laptop "Which would be..?"

Like he was hiding a secret, Cliff immediately snapped shut his computer and hugged it tight.

"I already told you, I can't tell you. I trust you, but I can't compromise my clients interests, like I agreed to" He said in uncharacteristically serious tone.

Even to this day, Rosa had no idea how he paid half the rent to their apartment, but by the end of the month, the money always seemed to show up out of thin air. All he did was sit at his laptop all day, with his headphones on. She thought he just sold clothes on the internet, or played a whole lot of fantasy football.

"Come on! It's not like I have any other friends!" She pointed out.

"I'll maybe tell you if you tell me what you were whispering last night"

 _No, please, it hurts! Stop it, please, please..._

She quickly blinked, as fear crossed her eyes and crawled down her spine. She knew exactly what she whispered last night, like those words were etched into her mind. Like they were burned into the flesh of her brain. It was a bad dream she definitely didn't want to bring up. So, she quickly washed it the terror in her eyes before her redheaded friend saw, and gave a false smile.

"I told you, I don't remember" She sent him a small glare. Cliff paused for a moment, and quickly scanned the room around him, like someone was watching him.

"Come closer," He whispered seriously, and wiggled his finger "I'll tell you"

Joy lit up Rosa eyes, and she leaned in closer, like she was acting in a suspense movie. And the suspense was killing her

"Closer...closer..." Cliff whispered, until his lips were inches away from her ear.

"Yeah?" She asked.

 _"I...I sell unicorns on the black market"_ Within seconds, an incredibly goofy smile came to his face.

"God dammit..." She shot a deadly glare to him, and collapsed back on the couch in frustration. Seconds later, she shrugged it off, and a grin came back to her face.

"Mood's not ruined much, so..." She jumped back to her feet, and walked over to a coat hanger "Now come on, get dressed"

The red headed guy shot her a suspicious glare, and hugged his laptop tighter "Why...?"

She playfully rolled her eyes "Don't worry, I'm not gonna do anything to you. I got promoted, so I wanna celebrate by taking you out to dinner"

His eyes lit up "Give me 10 minutes" He jumped to his feet, and practically skipped to the stairs.

"By the way, someone left you a message on the phone. Something...Alvarez?" Cliff waved his hands in total oblivion and walked up the stairs.

"Thanks!" She shouted back calmly. On the inside however, she was a ray of sunshine. After nearly 5 month of searching blindly on the Internet, this phone call might finally end her years long search.

Rosa ran to the home phone and frantically dialed the number that was spoken to her. But after the phone rang out, no one bothered to pick up on the line. The dark brown haired girl replied with a tired sigh, and waited in depression for the beep.

"Hi, I'm Rosalind Alvarez, and I got your message. I heard you reported a missing child about 15 years ago, with the last name of Alvarez, so if you could call me back tomorrow around noon, that would be great, thanks"

She sighed once more, and shoved the phone back into its little resting place. She lazily rested her body on the kitchen counter and started off blankly into the distance. She knew she was getting her hopes up. Each time she thought a certain set of people could be her parents, they weren't. 15 years was a long time without ever seeing your mom and dad. Who knows where they could be, let alone if they were even alive.

When the sun finally set, and the night grew, Cliff managed spruce himself up. He ran eagerly down the stairs, and grabbed a jacket, ready for a free meal.

Rosa brought a hint of a smile to her lips as she put on her jacket "Hey, you don't look half bad"

He frowned "What's that supposed to mean?"

She chuckled "Nothing. Come on, let's go"

He slipped on his jacket and opened the door "If anyone asks, you're my sister"

"Sure thing, 'Bro'" She replied with a grin.

As they headed down, the night grew longer. Small starts lit up the sky in the brightly lit city. The moon shined tall over the earth, glowing through the wispy, thin clouds. People filled the streets of the American capital, as though no one ever slept in the city.

They both slowly strolled down the busy streets, studying the different buildings that passed by them, in hopes of a place to eat.

"So, what are you in the mood for?" Rosa asked, glancing to Cliff, who had his eyes glued on to the screen of his massive smartphone.

He glanced up and smirked "Wow, your in a generous mood today"

"Yeah, I'm a freaking princess..." She sarcastically replied "No, but really. Cause if you don't choose, I'll spend the rest of the night just browsing places to go"

"Good point..." He trailed off, as he pushed the stop light button "How about that new restaurant?"

"Like I said, your choice" She shrugged her shoulders, and both of them stepped of the curve of the sidewalk.

"New Thai place it is then!" He replied with utter excitement, like a kid in a candy store.

She replied with a chuckle "Yeah, what will I do without you and your food?"

The two both glanced at each other, and grinned. So far, Rosa thought the day was going pretty well, she got a promotion, She got phone call sent from the heavens, and she managed to get Cliff's butt out of the house for the first time in weeks. It was almost like today was some kind of magical spin off of christmas, only bringing hope to her life. She wanted to cling onto it as long as she could, cherish it until their was absolutely nothing left. Days like these were rare and few in between, and she loved it.

Then things started going downhill.

As Cliff eyes were glued to his phone, and as Rosa glanced around at the brightly lit buildings, they failed to notice a small sedan driving up the street. It only seemed to speed up as it barreled down closer and closer to the crosswalk. It speeded oblivious right past the red light, straight towards the two friends.

Rosa heard a squealing skid, and lifted her head. Her eyes widened.

 _Shit_

"LOOK OUT!" She yelled, as she violently yanked her redheaded friends arm. Cliff lifted his eyes from his phone, but it was too late. The last thing his face registered was fear, because he knew what would happen next.

The heavy set car suddenly tipped over and skidded across the ground, sending bright sparks into the night sky. The front headlight of the car suddenly twisted, and slammed into the the two friends.

Cliff flew high into the air, like an airborne rag doll. He flew and flew until his body made contact with a nearby metal lamp pole. A sickening crack escaped his spine as his back violently crushed into pole. His body slid down the pole, leaving a thick trail of blood in behind in its wake.

Rosa was flung across the pavement, rolling in the air just above the ground. She cried in pain as she slammed into a black metal gate, hearing a loud crack escape her arm. She grimaced as a sharp, piercing pain struck her arm as she tried to move it, but found it simply loped to the side. Screams and gasps filled her ear, blurring her thoughts.

She hissed as she carefully rolled herself on the ground, towards the destruction. People filled the lit street, and surrounded a huge car that was tipped on its side. The front headlamp was shattered, along with a nice sized dent on the hood. She heard faint yelling from inside the car, but couldn't make out the words. She didn't even know if it was from the car. The screams were just a thick blanket that were crammed into her ears.

The brown haired girl froze up as she felt arms and hands touch her body, like she was being attacked. She relaxed once she saw two other woman with worried expressions. They both slowly lifted her battered body from the ground, and dragged her to her feet.

"Whe-Where's Cliff?" Rosa weakly asked, glancing desperately around for her friend.

"Your boyfr-"

Her eyes widened in fear once she caught a glimpse of her limp friend, forgetting about her broken arm

"CLIFF!"

She shoved the two other woman who helped her up and ran as fast as she could to her bloody friend. His shirt was already soaked in blood, and surrounding him like a puddle. His dark blue eyes were limp and tired, flickering signs of life. Hot blood started to trickle from his lip, down to his chin and neck, all the way to the collar of his shirt.

She dived into Cliff and tightly grabbed onto his chin. She quickly snapped up his head, trying to look him straight in the eye.

"Cliff! CLIFF! CLIFFFF!" She screamed out into his face. The only response she got was slow, heavy breathing. Not even his eyes flickered.

"No, No, No!" She yelled, as tears streamed down her bloody face "You are not gonna leave on me you hear?!"

Cliff coughed slightly, causing blood to fill up in his mouth. His hand shook violently, moving from his hand to his pocket.

"Cliff Joseph Smithson, you are NOT gonna die on me understand! Dying is not an option!" Rosa screamed into his limp, blood stained face.

"Exodus…" He mumbled through the blood that filled his mouth.

She squinted in confusion "What?"

Out of nowhere, a small flash drive appeared on his hand, violently bouncing on his shaky hand. Puzzled, her own shaky hand snatched the flash drive from his hand and stuck it in her pocket.

"E-Ex-xodus…" A faint whisper came from his lips. Suddenly, his arm went limp. His head rolled back to the side, causing blood to spill out of his mouth like a waterfall. Any life that was in his eyes disappeared into thin air, and left only a body behind.

"Cliff?" Her tear filled eyes widened once more. Her hands clamped onto the body's lifeless shoulders, shaking them "Cliff?! CLIFF!? NO!"

She banged his body against the pole his body laid on over and over again, until her broken arm cried in pain. Reality finally hit her. Her wide, fearful eyes and her shaky hand slowly let go of his shoulders.

"No, please, please no…" A shaky, scared voice escaped her, as hot tears streamed from her eyes, running blood all over her face.

All she could do was scream and cry. It was like a piece of her died along with her best friend, no, brother. Her family died today, her only family. Everyone she lived for was now gone. She was in pieces. And their was nothing she could do.

The she heard a shrill cry for help.

She slowly lifted her head from her tears, leaving her lifeless Cliff on the ground to wallow in his blood. She slowly turned around, and saw the overturned car once more. Except this time, she saw people inside.

As sirens and bright lights filled her ears and vision, inside the car she saw 4 people helplessly stuck inside the death machine, yelling out for their lives. They tried to shake out of the window and into the street, it was like a unknown force trapped them.

Rosa's cries ceased.

Her weak stare into the the trashed car became a deadly glare. The tears that rolled off her cheek stopped, leaving trails of dried blood on her face. Her shaky body became as stiff as a pole.

It was like all the anger that was built up around her was channeled into one situation. She knew if anything, the people in that car took the only thing she cared out life's away. And she more than anything, she wanted to return the favor.

She wanted them dead

A trail of glowing, bright orange glowed through her veins, running through her skin. The soft glow became brighter as it traveled all around her body, from her arms all the way to her face. The bright, orange light morphed into a soft red, as though she was a glowing lantern. Her light brown eyes began to morph into a bright, glowing red as the softer red beneath her skin trailed all over her face. Her glowing, red right hand dangerously lifted towards the car. Then everything went to hell.

 _Fuck it_

Her hand suddenly erupted into a huge ball of bright, orange flames. She pointed her incredibly hot hand at the car, sending a massive trail of fire at the helpless men in the car. The flames lit of the dark street, and lit up the utterly terrified men who were trapped in the car. The last thing Rosa saw were their terrified, pleading eyes before they were swallows in flames. Her red, glowing eyes didn't flinch one bit.

One second, bloody, shrill screams escaped the burning car, the next, a massive explosion ripped through the street. The overturned car disappeared within the huge ball of flames and smoke that engulfed the street around. Screams and gasps of the people around the huge accident turned sideways filled Rosa's ears.

Her glare strayed on her face as her body cooled from her attack, taking away the soft red that glowed in her eyes and in her face. She stared into the huge fireball she created from her own hand. Her own goddam power.

Her glaring, hateful eyes slowly morphed into fear. She glanced around the glowing fireball, and saw people with terrified looks that filled their faces. Terrified of her. She quickly glanced back at the the huge fire that swallowed up the car. She realized what she did, not onto to the poor people in that car, but to herself.

 _W-what have I done?_

She didn't know what to do. Should she stay? Should she fight the police? What?

So she ran, as fast as her legs could carry her. Through the thick crowd, through the street, leaving the body of her best friend, Cliff, who limply stared at the entire explosion back on the pole, with glazed over eyes.

As she ran, she tore off what was left of her burnt up, leather fingerless glove, and let it fall to the ground. She glanced in fear at what was underneath, etched forever into the skin of her hand. A constant reminder of what she was, and what she would always be.

 **384**

* * *

 **Wow... I'm really surprised(And REALLY grateful and appreciative) of all the people who favorited, followed and reviewed. I didn't think I'd get that much positive feed back so quickly, so thank you to all who reviewed, favorited, and followed this story!**

 **(And to** **SunSetsOfAnotherWorld , thanks for appreciating the Broship)(And to Guest, thanks for reading)**

 **So...lets just through a bunch of action through the first chapter! Cliff is also one of my OC's and plays a big role regarding Rosa, but he's...kinda dead so...** **This also takes place in 2015 because of the Ultron stuff, so that is considered the present for this story. Oh, and the song that plays above is called _You're so Vain_ by Carly Simon. To be honest it doesn't really have to do anything with the story, but it was a nice beat and tempo I found that fits in with Rosa herself(Yeah, it's an OLD song, but some people might like it). **

**Anyways, that's it! And Don't worry, Bucky WILL show up next chapter. Till then!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	3. Despera(te)do

Rosa hopelessly wandered through the dark, damp streets of Washington D.C, with a wrinkled piece of paper tight in her hand. She squeezed tight in her dirty hand it, like she was protecting it with her life. Hell, she was.

It was her last check, the last of her money from her work at that diner. She was lucky enough to run in there and grab the money as fast as she could, before her picture was up on the news on a television screen. Her boss was so preoccupied with phone calls and orders he barely glanced at the blood caked on her face and the tears that streamed down her eyes. He was lost in his own world of checks and phone calls, while she was buried deep within despair.

She pulled up her the sleeve of her broken arm. An orange, faded glow streamed out, like a night light. She tried to move it, but hissed in pain once she twisted it. At least it wasn't as broken as it was before. She swore it was bent backwards when she smacked into the iron fence. She estimated at least a few hours before her broken arm finally healed itself, a rough guess. It was simply a convenience to her powers, not that she was grateful for her powers. All she seemed to do was burn things.

The brown haired girl didn't even have a chance to get anything from her apartment. Once she arrived with her key in hand, police and government agents were swarming it like crazed bees. She had everything in there; an old photo album, her prized possessions, a photo album featuring her best friend.

 _Oh holy freaking mother of god...what have I done?_ She thought, her actions finally settling into her brain.

She blamed herself for the destruction she caused, and how she made it into a huge freak show, staring the fiery monster herself. She did what she tried not to do after nearly 10 years to her escape, lose control. But another feeling tugged at her heart, the feeling of satisfaction. It was like all her inner feelings simply boiled up when Cliff passed away in front of her eyes, feelings of anger that was from the past. It simply motivated her. In a way, she was only bringing justice to Cliff by hurting his killers. An eye for an eye. Yet, she had no idea if she simply gave them horrible burns, or sent them to a fiery death.

But nothing would help the fact that her best friend, the man that went through some of the ups and owns in her life, would never speak another word again. Anger boiled up in her again, rag at his careless killers. She bet they didn't even blink an eye when he died.

She squeezed her check in anger, squeezed it until her hand started to shake violently. Her light brown eyes sinisterly glowed through the shadows of the night, as though she was ready to kill. In her blinded rage, her hand bursted into bright flames.

"Crap, crap, craaapp!" She shouted as she threw the burning check on the ground. Her eyes were widened as she stomped on the crispy piece of paper, until the flames vanished. She gave an exasperated sigh, and delicately lifted what was left of her check. It had brown, crispy edges all around what now looked like an awkward circle. The amount was burnt out, and unreadable.

Her mouth turned into a snarl, and she violently threw down the burnt paper on the ground.

"DAMMIT!"

She screamed into the night air, her voice trailing through the streets. She clenched her teeth, and wrapped her hand into a tight fist. She whipped around and slammed her fist into the wall. Her knuckled were slightly coated in blood and pain, but the pain erupting from her mind was much worse. As her lip quivered, she collapsed on the wall beside her. She buried her hands into her face, and burst into steamy, hot tears.

She felt like a mess, hell, she looked like one, considering she didn't get much time to clean herself up. Blood and ash stained her once clear, light tan face, and ran all, over her jacket, white tank top, and dark jeans.

From this point on, she just wanted everything to fit into place, go according as planned. And trying to set fire to the only thing that could go her out of the city definitely wasn't the plan.

 _Well, it's not like I could really use it anyways…_ She thought weakly. Her photo was probably posted all over her bank anyways. It was simply a useless piece of paper she shoved all her hopes and dreams on.

She sighed through the mess of her tears and dug her hands into her pockets. She pulled out a large smartphone, with hairlines cracks traveling across the glass screen. She gently rubbed her fingers across the broken screen, and tightly closed her eyes. This was the last thing she had of Cliff, or at least the last thing she always known about. That weird flash drive was a completely different story. All she wanted was Cliff, her rock. Her guidance through this mess.

After minutes of crying, she finally wiped the tears from her eyes and got back to reality. She took off her boots and ripped a piece of her jeans off, to use as a cloth. She wiped the sweat, blood, and the rest of the tears away from her face and chucked the ripped cloth away in the alley.

 _First things first I guess..._ She internally shrugged. She need some form of shelter for the night, someplace to hide and sleep off the night, if she could. She wasn't going just to sleep on a park bench or on the street, that's just pinning a target on her back. If she found food, that would be a bonus. Because spitting fire from your hands is bound to make anyone a little hungry.

Rosa carefully scanned the alleys, in search of some form of indoor shelter, and police in general. She didn't know if the police were looking at her because she caused the huge explosion, or simply as a 'witness' to the entire fiasco. Either way, if she was caught she was screwed.

She poked her head out from the corner of the alley, before she walked down yet another long alley way. She tilted her head in puzzlement when she noticed a large, brown canvas drape hung over what looked like a wall, like someone was leaving something to dry. At a closer look, she noticed faded, brown words stamped on it, from a company she had no idea about. But what really grabbed her attention was how she saw a subtle light glimmering through the stitches of the sack.

She curiously stuck out her palm, and lightly touched the sack, expecting to hit a hard surface. When she continued to move her hand further however, she only felt air, not a wall. She quickly lifted the draped canvas and revealed a dark, sunken small space underneath. Her eyes lit up in joy as a small smile quickly crossed her face.

She hung herself over the edge and jumped into the small room. The floor was smooth, dark concrete with the occasional crack. Long, thin, broken windows sat tightly against the ceiling, barely letting in any light. The walls were slightly peeling of old paint, revealing a flowery wall paper underneath. The house looked like it was a cheap horror movie house in the making.

She entered another room, and breathed a sigh of relief. It was in a little better shape, but significantly smaller. A beaten up couch sat right across the entrance, along with a small coffee table, littered with candy bars and books. What was interesting to Rosa was how neatly everything was lined up. The candy bars were in a tight, neat row, like little army soldiers. The books, or what she could see now as journals, were also lined up in a long row, with the journal furthest to the end of the table open to a fresh, blank page. Even a wooden pencil was carefully snugged against the open journal.

The brown haired girl immediately ran to the table, and snatched one of the bars from its rightful place in row, like some ravage animal. She tore off the wrapper and dug her teeth in to its chocolate coating. She rolled her eyes in bliss, and collapsed onto the couch, putting her feet on the coffee table. As she chewed through her bar, she dug herself into the couch, getting dangerously comfortable.

Her eyes slightly widened in realization _What the HELL am I doing?_

It was obvious someone already was living here, if the undusted candy bars and journals didn't set her off. She was invading someone's home, someone that could report her to the police if they found her stuffing _their_ food in _her_ face

Her eyelids slightly dropped, as a wave of sleepiness took over her. She hugged her arms tight, and started to bury her face within the couch. It was like her last thoughts simply slid out of her mind, like ice cream oozing off a hot car.

 _Eh, If they come, I'll burn them to a crisp..._ The thought rolled out from her mind, as she grew into sleep. Minutes later, she was out like a light.

* * *

The C.I.A was an incredibly busy, and frustrating place. Take now for instance.

Sharon walked around the long, meeting table in determination, busily working on her latest case. She brushed her hair out of her face as she grabbed a file and thumbed through its pages, trying to put the pieces together. The outside world was gone, and the only thing that mattered was completing her case. She was on a mission, and the word 'failure' wasn't in her vocabulary.

She snapped out of her trance when she heard the door squeak open. She glanced up to see a tall man dressed in a suit, wearing a tight, crooked smile. He strolled right into her domain, with a thin file in hand.

"Agent" The man greeted, his smile slightly wavering.

"Agent," Sharon nodded, and dug back into her file "What do you want?"

"Your being assigned a new case. Director's orders" the man tossed the file onto the table. The blond agents snapped her head back up, and shot a look of confusion at him.

"But i've been working on this for months. If he could give me a few days I'm sure-" She replied with a tinge of frustration in her voice.

"I'm sorry, but he thought with your experience with SHIELD, this case would fit your expertise" He gave a shrug of his shoulders and plucked the file from Sharon's hands. She gave an exasperated sigh, but she knew their was nothing she could do. So, she swallowed her her thoughts and locked them in her head, and started thumbing through her new case file.

"So, he thought investigating a car crash would better suit me than my other case?" She raised her brow.

"Not exactly," He replied with yet another tight smile, and pulled out a small table tucked under his arm. With a few swipes of his fingers, a video of a car crash emerged.

"A quick debriefing. At first it was just a car robbery gone wrong, car crashed into two civilians, killing one. A couple of kids thought it would be fun to hijack a truck and made a run for it. But then _she_ showed up. Luckily, someone was kind enough to record _this_ at the scene"

His finger drew to the brown haired girl, who stood a good distance away from the flipped over car. Suddenly, Sharon saw the girl's hand morph into a bright orange time, and her tiny, brown eyes fade into a warm orange. A huge ball of flames shot at the flipped car, and engulfed the car. A huge explosion erupted from the car, and the shaky tape cut short.

The blond agent's eyes widened in curiosity, as she glanced back up to the suited man "Fatalities?"

"Three, and two in critical condition. Based on their injuries, One of them is expected to die by morning"

"And you said a fatality before the explosion?"

"Yeah," He responded "Witnesses say that the deceased and the suspect knew each other, and when he passed on, that's when the suspect attacked"

Sharon glanced through a page of the file, which were filled with pictures of an apartment, as well as other items specifically photographed as evidence.

"And anything in terms of background?" She asked.

"Deceased name is Radcliffe Joseph Smithson, 24 years old. Nothing especially special about his history, just a kid who bounced from foster home to foster home. We're still looking into anything else that may seem important to the case"

"The suspect?"

"Her name is Rosalind Alvarez, 25 years old. Again, just a foster kid, but there's something unusual about her files and information on her before 2004"

"Why is that?" Sharon raised her head, and glanced up.

The man washed the tight smile from his face "That's it, they don't exist. We looked through every data base we could find, but it's like she disappeared off the face of the planet until 2004, when she appeared in a orphanage in a small town near the border. From her phone calls, she seems to be tracking people who lost a kid, around the time where her files don't exist"

Sharon sighed, and tossed the file back on the table "So, it only been hours since the scene, so she couldn't have gone very far…" she trailed off "Any TIPS on her whereabouts?"

"Not yet, but I-" The man was interrupted by a loud, monotone beep on his tablet. He swiped his fingers a couple of times, and twisted his tablet for the blonde agent to see.

"We just got a fix on the suspect's location" He said, as he pointed to a small dot flickering on a white map.

"Ok then," She nodded, and made her way out of the room. Right as she was about to walk out, she stopped at the entrance and looked back at the suited man.

"I'll get the team ready. Meet me down at the loading dock in five"

* * *

Bucky hung his head low, navigating the streets of Washington with a plastic bag of groceries in his hand. His hand were stuffed in thick, black gloves, as though it was freezing cold. Even his jacket was thick, too thick for the hot, sticky air that sat at night.

It's been practically a year since SHIELD fell, and when he 'unofficially' left HYDRA. He still hid out, from God knows who is trying to find him. Probably a mixture of what's left of HYDRA and the government. Either way, he hasn't even stepped a foot out of Washington since. It's not like he really had anywhere to go, like a safe house.

All he did in his spare time was spy on Steve, the star-spangled man with a plan, well on most days.

Steve, the man he rescued from the river, always sat in his mind. Even with the visit to the museum, Bucky still tried to put the pieces of his former life back into place. He just knew that Steve and him used to be good friends. That's it.

All he did in his spare time was spy on Steve, Captain America. From a tall ledge with a pair of binoculars he found, he stalks Steve on his run through Washington memorial, along with that other guy, who sticks to him like glue. Other times, he would be a face in the crowd, staring at Steve as he picked groceries, or just walked through the D.C streets. He knew the blond man's daily routine as well as he knew how to snipe someone. But for these past few weeks, there wasn't any sign of Steve.

Bucky entered a dark, damp alley, and glanced around for his makeshift home. He suddenly halted, and glared into the entrance of his little shelter. Sunk into the ground, the brown, canvas tarp that sat over the hole to his house didn't seem right. The usually smooth, wrinkle free tarp had a large, long stretching wrinkle in the middle of it. Like someone lifted it.

He slowly set down his plastic bag at the entrance, and carefully lifted the tarp, careful not to make one sound. He silently landed on the floor, and suspiciously scanned his shelter. His ears were only filled with silence, nothing more. As he started to crawl to the entrance of the other room, he heard the faint sound of breathing.

Bucky immediately his behind the wall, and peaked his head into the other room. He squinted in confusion, as he scanned the source of the sound.

The young girl with dark brown hair and light brown eyes laid curled up on his couch, lightly breathing as she slept. She hugged her body tightly, as though she was protecting herself, in defensive mode. Bucky let his guard a little down, and silently walked into the room. He glanced at his neatly set table, and saw a torn, shiny wrapper glimmer through the dull light. It was simply tossed on his blank journal, wrapped up in a crinkly little ball.

He looked back at the sleeping girl, studying every little twitch she made. It was obvious to Bucky she was in a deep sleep, and wouldn't be woken very easily. But her sleep didn't look peaceful. Her dark eyes were squeezed shut, like she was forcing herself to sleep. The tight pursing of her lips also gave a signal to the Winter Soldier, like her sleep was simply a chore, not a place to rest.

She didn't seem very threatening, but neither did Pierce. So he wasn't going to take any chances.

Bucky pulled open a drawer and drew out a roll of duct tape.

 _Riiiiip_

* * *

 **Dun, DUN, DUUUNN! So there's a little cliff hanger right now. The story REALLY starts next chapter, and it should be longer too. Yeah, I included Sharon in here too. She's really not a major character, so were not gonna see much of her. Let's just say she's a connection to something bigger.**

 **If you haven't read my profile...I'm sick...so I'm not sure when the next chapter will come. By the way i'm feeling, it probably won't be next week, so sorry about that. If anything changes, I'll put it on my profile. Sorry...**

 **Till Then!(Whenever that is...)**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	4. Run Like Hell(Oh Dear God Help Me)

_Darkness._

 _It was the only thing Rosa could see, just utter black. It was strange though, the darkness. It was like she knew something was buried within the black shadows. But she didn't know if she wanted to see it._

 _With the sound of a click, light filled the room. It wasn't much, but it seemed to perfectly illuminate the two people who sat in the middle of the room. The light flicked on their tired faces, casting a mysterious shadow that ran from their noses to their chins. The light shined onto the cracked, concrete floor, and a rusty medical table, in need to serious repair._

 _The tallest of the mysterious people was a tall, thickly bearded man, with a set of shiny goggles over his eyes. He wore a bright, white lab coat, without a speck of dirt of blood on it. The only source of expression on his face came from his large, drooping frown. It was like the corners of his mouth were stitched down._

 _A small girl looked up to him, with wide, innocent eyes, that were completely bloodshot. Her once shiny, well kempt hair was a tangled mess, all over her face. She wasn't a bag of bones, but the smooth and ragged shape of her bones began to protrude from her arms and legs. She looked anxiously up to the man. Rosa saw the clear fear that was reflected in the girl's eyes, as though if she even blinked, she would get a sound fist to the face._

" _Вы почти полный" The man's soft voice echoed throughout the darkness._

" _ **You are almost complete"**_

" _But-" The girl said in a tired voice._

" _На нашем языке!" The man suddenly snapped, causing the small child to squeak in shock and fear._

" _ **In our Language!"**_

 _The girl's lip quivered, as she stuttered "Н-Hо я не могу быть гот-mовым!"_

" _ **But I can't be ready!"**_

 _Rosa anxiously looked at the two. She wanted to scream, burn, hurt the white coated man as he looked down at the small frightened girl. He looked down upon the girl with total disappointment, as though she was only an object, not a person. It was like anything with feelings simply spelt out weakness to the man._

 _Rosa felt an overwhelming urge to protect the girl, even though she never met her. It was like she met her once, but never seen her wide, innocent face._

 _The man sighed, and stuck in hand into his pocket. Rosa's eyes widened in fear when she saw what he pulled out. A gun._

 **Don't you even think about it!** _Rosa screamed in her mind, baring her teeth. She tried to lunge, run, release flames from her hand, but she couldn't move. It was like her body hand a mind of its own._

" _Используйте это, и вы будете" The man tossed the gun to the little girl, like a toy, all with a cruel smirk._

" _ **Use this, and you will"**_

 _The small child looked into the beaten up pistol with curious eyes. Her eyes lit up in curiosity as she examined every shiny little piece that made up the gun. She trailed her small, dirty fingers over the barrel, covering the tips of them in black._

 _Rosa still had a furious look in her eyes, but she looked back in puzzlement. The man tossed the thing to the girl he knew every well could kill him. He could maybe call on the girl not having an idea how to use the gun, but that was a big if._

 _Suddenly, a calming force overcame Rosa. The fury that struck her eyes soon filled with humor. The scowl on her face changed to a grin, deprived of happiness. She looked back in pity, not only of the girl, but of the man who controlled her. The irony struck her_

 **Why give her the gun, when she's already the weapon?**

The dark brown haired girl jumped awake, her eyes wide for a split second. Realizing it was just a figment of her imagination, she relaxed her body, and stretched out her arms. But when she tried to rise her arms, she couldn't, almost like they were stuck together. Because they were.

 _What in the name of hell?!  
_  
She tried to mutter, but found her mouth was duct taped shut, along with her wrists and her legs. Her eyes widened in shock as she tried to wiggle herself out. She fell to the floor and wiggled around like a worm desperately and pathetically trying to get out of the duct tape. She thought, with her abnormal strength, she would split the duct tape in half with a hard pull, but it was like they were glued together.

"Mph! Mph! Mppppphhh!" She loudly muffled, with a thick line of duct tape on her face. Realizing she wasn't going to get out anytime soon, she closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, straightening her thoughts. She huffed herself up, and leaned on the back of the couch.

 _Ok, just relax...you can do this without screaming your head off and attracting everyone one who wants to kill you. Just calm down, and melt yourself out, ok?  
_  
Unfortunately, even with the calming exercises she taught herself and used way too many times, her heart was still beating out of her chest. She found when she got angry or annoyed, her powers seemed to show up. But when she felt like she had a target plastered on her back for everyone in the world to see, flames failed to spark.

Rosa scanned around anxiously, in search of the idiot who tied her up. It was only logical; she probably invaded someone's makeshift house, so they basically held her hostage, in fear they stole what little items they had. A little excessive, but to Rosa, understandable.

She snapped her head at the small doorway, when the click of a foot step filled her ear. Slowly, out of the shadows, a man appeared. Gruff looking, with long, filthy hair, and beaten down clothes, Rosa realized she did invade a home of a homeless person. And it definitely didn't help that he held a long, thick knife in his leather, gloved hands.

He was obviously defensive, if the knife didn't already set Rosa off, but it seemed like the man was like a small, defenseless animal, rather than a tiger baring its teeth. She began to feel uneasy, feeling his blank, deathlike set into her mind. She realized this man, if she made one false move, wouldn't hesitate to stab her.

 _I. Regret. Everything.  
_  
Bucky cautiously crept out of the darkness, and into the dim, night light streaming from the windows. He squeezed the knife in his hand, ready for what this girl may do to him. He didn't plan to use the knife, but if this girl was who he thought she was, things may turn out much differently. The brown haired girl shot him a look of angry curiosity, with angry muffles escaping her duct tape mask. The Winter Soldier simply concluded the girl was more pissed off than anything else, just wanting to escape the entire roll of duct tape he used on her.

A question sat uneasily in Bucky's mind: Why was she here?

Rosa anxiously glared with wide eyes towards Bucky as he crept closer. As he stepped closer and closer, Her violent jerks became subtle twitches. Her wide, fearful eyes began to squint, but were still full of terror. All she wanted to know was what the heck he was going to do to her.

Bucky silently bent down in front of the brown haired girl, glaring his steel blue eyes into the girl's light brown. He slowly brought his dark finger to his lips, without a twitch of his eye. Only seconds later, he sinisterly rubbed the sharp blade of the knife against the thin skin of his neck, threatening death.

It was painfully clear to Rosa: Scream or have your neck diced to pieces

The brown haired girl anxiously nodded her head, shaking it to a point where it made her completely dizzy. Bucky gave one last suspicious glare at the girl, before he grabbed onto the edge of the duct tape on her mouth and ripped it off in one, painful motion.

"Mph- Ow..." She moaned, as she moved her jaw around from the pain. Her cheeks and lips throbbed a bright pink, like she dumped bright make up on herself. She tried to pull out of her duct tape cuff once again, to rub the pain away, but almost dislocated her shoulder. She wondered if anyone had a vengeance against duct tape, because she sure was starting to.

Bucky cautiously backed up, and drew his chest closer to his chest. He slowly bent down, and sat on his coffee table, only feet away from the brown haired girl. His eyes flicked with strange curiosity, but not noticeable enough for Rosa to see. For minutes, the two blankly stared at each other, waiting for one to jump out and attack, or just start blabbing away. That of course, went to Rosa.

She awkwardly scanned her eyes around the room, waiting for something to happen "So...um...hello"

Bucky failed to react, at all. He didn't even blink. It certainly didn't help the awkward, weird feeling that began to grow in her stomach.

"Ok then...Are we just gonna stare at each other or something?" She nervously asked "Because if that's the case, I got places to be. So if you could kindly uncuff me…"

"Who sent you?" Bucky finally croaked out, with a small, gruff voice. Rosa shot him a look of total confusion, raising her brow.

"Erm...what?"

"Who sent you?" He repeated in a slightly louder tone.

Rosa drew her utterly confused eyes to the floor, deciding her answer "...Myself?" She shrugged. An idea suddenly came to her head. If she could hold off the crazy homeless guy long enough with these questions, she could melt the duct tape off her arms, and rip off the tape on her legs and run for her freaking life.

The Winter Soldier gave a tired sigh, tightening his grip on his faulty knife "Who do you work for?"

"Uh...let's see. I worked at a small convenience store few years ago, now I work, well _worked_ at a diner in the middle of the city" she scoffed "But since my life is screwed up now, I work for myself. Does that eloquently answer your question?"

She felt her arms heat up, and backed a little further towards the couch to hide the bright orange glow from her arms. The duct tape started to glisten a soft, metallic grey, as it absorb the heat.

Bucky completely ignored her "Was it HYDRA? SHIELD? Who?"

Rosa brought a small grin to her face "I'm sure you'd _love_ to know but," she ripped her arms apart, and clung on to her taped legs "No"

Before she could rip the tape from her legs, Bucky lunged at her and threw her to the ground. Her eyes widened in shock when he pinned her down to the ground, and held the knife close to her frail neck.

"Tell me" he commanded, but on the same, calm tone that made Rosa's skin crawl.

"I already told you!" She yelled trying to wiggle out "I don't work for anyone! Just let me go!"

"Stop lying" Bucky rose his voice.

"I am freaking warning you" She loudly growled, as a snarl came to her face "I have had the shittist day of my life today, so let me the _hell_ go, or I swear I'll make my day look like rainbows and sunshine compared to what I'll bring down on your ass!"

"Then what is that?" He whispered, glaring down her body. A total look of confusion crossed her face, replacing all her anger. She looked down to her pocket, and saw a soft, red glow emerge out. She squinted her eyes in puzzlement. If that wasn't her…

Bucky realized the total confusion that filled her eyes meant the truth, or at least enough to say that she wasn't coming after him. He slowly let go of his heavy grip, letting the girl grasp the metallic, glowing object.

Rosa saw a large, red dot in the middle of the phone screen, that only beeped faster each second. Above that dot a count down ran, with numbers rapidly decreasing. She squinted for a moment at the numbers and the dot, for their meaning.

Bucky raised his head, and let go of his grip, at the sound of subtle foot steps. As seconds passed they grew louder and louder. His eyes flicked emotion with the sound of whispering.

Rosa's eyes widened, at the blowing realization. She literally brought the authorities to her.

"They're here" She anxiously whispered, causing Bucky to glance at her on the ground with confusion in his eyes.

 _Oh shit…_

The two immediately ducked down, as violently glass shattered all around. Men in heavy fabric armor emerged through the windows and landed on the concrete, with hefty assault rifles. They all pointed their barrels at the two, ready for attack.

"On the ground, now!" One of the agents shouted

Rosa simply tucked herself into a ball like that would protect her from bullets. She was caught. After...hours of being on the run, she was caught. To her, it was just pathetic. She's done much better, years even, or running until someone finally tracked her.

Bucky on the other hand stood in place, and glared at the agents. He didn't quite know if they were just after the girl, or they finally found him too. Either way, it spelled trouble for the Winter Soldier.

But the young firebender wasn't ready to give up her run. She wasn't ready.

Her eyes lit up with a raging orange. She jumped up and sent a wall of flames towards the Amherst, causing then to be swept from their feet and slammed into the wall. Some agents quickly got to their feet and started to rain bullets towards Rosa. She tightly held up her forearms and created a thick wall of flames between her and the bullets. As the bullets or tracked the flames, they simply melted, dripping metal to the ground once they touched the hot fire.

With the chaos, Bucky realized he had a chance to escape, especially with the agents so focused on the fire spitter. As Rosa sent more flames at the men, he made a dart for his exit. As he ran into the other room however, he saw men emerge from the canvas sack and land into the room, backup for the chaos. Bucky slowly backed up in surprise, but quickly washed it off.

Making a snap decision, he threw his knife at the agent, digging into the flesh of one of their hands. They screamed in pain, and dropped their rifle. As bullets flew towards him, he lifted his metal arm and slid on the ground. He grabbed the rifle from the ground, and flipped up to his feet. He immediately pulled the trigger and sent a wave of bullets at their legs. One by one, they screamed and dropped to the ground like flies, grabbing their legs and knees in utter, sharp pain.

More agents piled in, filling the small, dark room. Rosa slammed her fiery fist into the shoulder of the last conscious guard. They slammed into the ground, causing their head to bang into the ground and snap back with a loud crack. Their body went limp, and laid along with the other knocked out guards. As she caught her breath, she glanced into the other room, and saw the homeless dude desperately fighting off agents like no tomorrow.

She had to admit, she felt a little guilty dragging him into this mess. It technically was her fault they were here attacking them with every weapon at hand. But then again, she couldn't worry about him, not now. It was every man for himself.

Or at least until her guilt boiled over.

 _Dammit conscience…._

She gave a heavy sigh, and glanced around the room, for a weapon, anything. What she saw in the corner of the room brought her mouth into a grin.

Bucky chucked the empty rifle into an agent's head, and slammed his foot into their stomach. Another guard sent their foot into his side, another a fist into his head. He ducked down low and gave a low sweep to the ground, causing the guards around him to trip and collapse to the ground.

He groaned in pain as a sharp, searing pain took over his shoulder. He quickly ran his finger over his shoulder, and felt a hot, sticky substance. Blood.

Turning around with glaring eyes, he saw an agent glaring back at him, as he cautiously refilled his ammo. With the cock of his assault rifle, he aimed right at the Winter Soldier. Right for the kill shot.

Suddenly, a large, hollow bang went through the room. It echoed out, like a bell ringing. The agent's eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he collapsed to the ground like tissue paper. As his body limped to the ground, Bucky suspicious glanced at the woman behind.

Rosa tightly held her glowing, bright orange pipe, freshly melted from the wall. She breathed heavily, as the glow from her arms and eyes slowly disappeared. She glanced around the room, with the amount of limp bodies thrown about on the ground.

"Uh...sorry" She huffed "About _this_ " She quickly waved her hands around the bodies spewed on the floor. She leaned her hands on her knees, in her exhaustion. She wasn't exactly a fighter type, let alone have a strong endurance. All she really did was walk around everywhere, not run and punch everywhere.

Bucky shot her a blank, curious look, studying the girl. She was different, in simple terms. Shooting fire from your hands was certainly new, nothing he's ever seen before. The strangest thing he remembered was some guy ripping off his face in front of him. He's been in this era for about a year, and he didn't think he'd get used to it anytime soon.

With the sound of slamming, our footsteps, the two vigilantes whipped their heads around to the small, torn entrance. Before they could react, the familiar, blond agent rammed a long, sparking taser into Bucky's side. He hissed and clenched his teeth tightly in sparking pain, as electricity steamed through his body. His metal arm twitched uncontrollably, like a fish out of water, useless to the Winter Soldier.

"We have another bogey, repeat, we have another bogey" Sharon shouted through her earpiece.

Sharon stabbed his side with her other taser, causing him to finally scream in pain, echoing through the room. The pain was there, the electricity stabbing through his body, but he could deal with the physical pain. The mental kind? Not so much. Flashbacks went through his frail, broken head, memories of the chair, the trigger words, that goddamn helmet. All he could think about was the unbearable pain on that chair.

He violently shook to the ground, weakly to his knees. He squeezed his eyes shut, tightly holding his shoulders. He clenched his teeth tightly, wanting everything to stop.

Sharon withdrew her glowing tasers, and cautiously crept towards the brown haired girl. With wide, fear eyes, she slowly backed up. She stepped behind herself until she hit the wall, and clenched her fists. She wished she was scared of the blond agent, it would make things much easier. But it was those tasers that made her tremble in fear.

"Ms. Alvarez, stand down" Sharon commanded, as she trailed her fingers over her weapons "We can make this very simple, and no one else will get hurt"

"And what if we take the not-so simple route?" Rosa asked, trying to shove courage in her tone, but was a thin veil for her scared voice "You'll stab me with those things until I become a kabob? Because if that was your plan, it won't work, believe me"

The blond agent glanced down at her long tasers, then drew her eyes back at Rosa "What other choice would I have? Your an enhanced _and_ running from the government"

"Ok, I'll admit it probably wasn't the best thing to do, but those people in that car? They _killed_ someone. They had it coming. Wasn't it just karma?" Rosa's voice went dry.

"Some of them are in a hospital with 3rd degree burns. One of them even lost a leg"

"They killed my best friend!" Rosa snapped, clenching her fist "They didn't give _one_ shit when they hit and killed him, no they just wanted to run! If they don't care, then why the hell should I?" She felt anger boil within her once more, dangerously heating up her core. She felt the heat build up her body, as her veins started to glow brightly in the dim light.

"Then why are you running?"

In a snap, the anger, the rage disappeared from her eyes, and filled with deep thought. She squinted her eyes, and drew her head to the ground. If she didn't care, if she really didn't give two shits - really only make that one shit - about anything, wouldn't she just burn that blond woman to cinders to get her to shut that mouth of hers? Or would she just freely give herself up to the authorities and let them deal with her problems?

Why was she running? The answer should of been simple, but it just wasn't.

With wide eyes, and a sure deathwish, Rosa snapped up her palms and sent a wave of fire at the Sharon. She sheer force swept her off her feet, and she crashed into the ground. The bright flames flew over her body, like a thick, hot, fog, until it dissipated in the air. The brown haired girl slowly with twitchy hand, set down her hands, realizing she just fucked up an already fucked up situation. She double fucked it.

No, she triple fucked it up. This was evident when Sharon jumped back to her feet, and reached for her pistol. Still on her deathwish, Rosa lunged in for Sharon and pummeled her to the ground. The gun bounced on the ground, and slid away only inched from Sharon's desperate fingers.

Rosa used all her might to pin the blond agent to the ground, clamping on to her hands and legs, and digging her dull nails into her flesh like an ravaged animal. But like she was butter, Sharon's arms simply slid out. She quickly grabbed her taser and violently rammed it into Rosa's side.

Rosa cried bloody murder as the painful electricity stabbed through her insides, crawling through every little crevice in her body. She pathetically flipped over to the ground, and curled up into a tight ball, pulling her hair into her red, bright fist. Squeezing her tear filled eyes, all she could comprehend was that she knew the pain wouldn't stop. It would come again, and again, like some twisted cycle. It wouldn't stop until they wanted it to. Or, if she died.

Through the pounding ring through her ears, she heard what sounded like something collapsing, like wet clothes slipping on the sidewalk. She sure as hell wasn't going to find out what it was, not after her body felt like it was being sliced n' diced.

Out of nowhere, she felt something stab her shoulder; not like a deadly knife stab, but like a curious poke stab. Either way, it caused the brown haired girl to attack at any cost. Rosa whipped her head around, revealing her glowing, soft orange eyes. She stabbed her hot, steamy hand through the air, hoping to burn anything in the way.

But when she looked up, she saw the homeless, long haired guy stand tall above her, clamping onto her hit, burning hand with his left hand. Realizing he wasn't going to attack her, let alone stab her like a kabob again, she carefully stood up in a non-threatening way and slipped out of his grip.

She glanced around, and saw the blond agent sprawled out on the floor, her tasers safe and far away from her limp fingers. She scanned back to the man, who blankly stared back at her, but this time, it looked like he was anxiously waiting for something.

"Thanks, for...erm" Rosa trailed off, wiping the built up tears in her eyes "Yeah. You should probably get outta here, before they realize I'm still here and send in more guys"

Bucky knew that was as good of a plan as his mission to kill Steve; no matter how hard he tried, it wasn't going to work. Once he jumps out that door, government agents would be right on his tail, and he would be caught. Next thing he would be up at some kind of high security prison with a baggy orange suit and meals twice a day. Locked up like some kind of deranged criminal. But wasn't he? Isn't that what he felt every time he saw the face of one of his victims?

"That's smart" He blankly replied, causing Rosa to awkwardly raise her brow.

"I can't tell if you're being serious or not…" She mumbled, but quickly shook the thought out of her head "Look, you need to go _now_. This is my deal"

"It's been mine too" He replied, thinking of how the government always on his tail.

Rosa sort-of put the pieces together. From his last comments when she was held hostage by duct tape, and now, it was obvious the government was after the homeless man too. For what? At this point, she didn't care. She just knew she could use that to her advantage.

"Then we're both in the same boat!" She anxiously shouted, expecting men to come at any second "And that doesn't matter right now! Just get your ass outta here!" She pleaded again. It was almost like he was begging to get arrested, at least to Rosa.

Bucky gave a tired sighed "There's too many of them. If I go, I'll get shot, or captured"

Rosa followed with a loud groan, and held her temple with frustration. She didn't think of that. Even with the coast seemingly clear, the government would be on both of their tails in no time. Even with Bucky's metal arm, it wouldn't stop a few snipers and other men on the ground with assault rifles. Their was really only one way they were both going to get out together.

She lifted her head towards Bucky with a tired but determined look on her face "Then the only way we're gonna make it out, is if we work together"

The Winter Soldier could only nod in agreement. Unfortunately for him, it was the only way he was going to make it out with his head and arm intact. Considering the weird, brown haired girl basically lit fire from her own hands, it was the main selling point for him. If not, he might as well of kissed his freedom goodbye.

Rosa replied to the abnormally strong homeless man with a smirk. Oddly enough, she felt a bit safer.

* * *

"Holy shit man!" Rosa exclaimed "That was one hell of a fight!"

She basically, like a schoolgirl, circled around the homeless man with some damn good fighting skills through the dark alleys. She didn't expect anything like what she saw before in that room. The man took down government agents like domino's, and still had time to pack his scattered journals and food. To the fangasmic firebender, it was like something straight out of a movie. It almost put her burning powers to shame all she ready did was push people to the ground and smack them on the head with her metal pipe. She even hit the, when they collapsed on the ground, just to make sure they stay down.

Bucky simply walked down the alley, like the strange, stalker girl was simply a figment of his imagination. He suspiciously eyed her as she quickly went from side to side, spitting out compliments like a PEZ dispenser. She certainly did seem less threatening at this point.

"You freaking took down those guys like nothing! I mean, not even those 3 guys who tackled you couldn't take you down! And when-"

Bucky grabbed one of his candy bars from his backpack and tossed it to Rosa. She immediately shut her mouth, and looked up to him with fake, innocent, wide eyes.

"Take it" He said, and turned once more to walk away, hopefully for good. But Rosa had something different in mind.

"Wait!" She blurted out, immediately regretting it. And to her added horror, Bucky whipped his head around, waiting for an answer.

 _Great going Rosa...What the hell are you gonna say anyways?_

"I think we can, uh...You're running from the government, I'm running from the government. I think we can work together on this"

Bucky raised his brow in confusion at her words.

She gave a tired sigh "Look, we both have a reason that we're running from the government; yours, It doesn't matter. Mine, who cares? We both have common ground. And if we work together, we can be safe from the government"

"Didn't you lead them to us?" Bucky asked.

"Fair enough, but that won't happen again, promise. I smashed everything I had electronic on me back there. We both have skills that work good together, like you're batshit fighting skills, and my ability to turn people into a crisp"

"It would be too dangerous, for both of us"

She scoffed "It's dangerous now. You lived in an abandoned basement in the middle of freaking government U.S.A. I know how to stay low, get attention away from me, believe me, I have been for practically 10 years of my life"

Bucky still wasn't buying it. To be fair, he did make a few mistakes by staying in the middle of Washington, but the only reason he was caught was because of the girl. A few things she said seemed a little desirable, but not enough to jump on her bandwagon.

"That's not enough. I'm better off on my own" He turned around once more, and walked down once again.

Rosa right crossed her arms. She tried everything she could think of, expect grabbing onto his legs and begging for him to stay. She only saw the homeless man as a bargaining chip, a body guard. Strong enough to protect her in times like this, but vulnerable enough to get caught so she could make a run for it. So, she dug into her bag of tricks and pulled out the last one.

"I know of a place…" She loudly mumbled, drawing her eyes to the ground "A safe house"

Bucky turned around in curiosity.

"I've been there once, it's remote and out of the country. It's a really good place to hide out"

"Where is it?" Bucky asked with a trace of recognizable curiosity.

She drew her light brown eyes up "It's across the Canadian border, near North Dakota. Food, water, we could be there for months. We could hide out there" She sighed. It was really her only secret she's ever kept. She's tucked it away for emergencies, dire situations. Apparently this was the dire situation. And the only time she used it was an emergency, but for a more sinister reason.

"Come with me and I'll take you there. Deal?" Rosa stuck out her hand, waiting for a handshake.

Bucky stared blankly at her dirty hand, pondering this new development. He was very familiar with safe houses, it was a HYDRA staple. They were, well, safe. But could he trust this girl? Trust her intentions? But, wasn't like she knew he was the Winter Soldier, the assassin everyone was after. She didn't have a clue

He sighed, and shook her hand "Deal"

She replied with a grin. Bucky nodded. Worst case scenario, if he was going down, he was certainly going to take her down with him. Trust was still a long way, but the government wasn't.

"My name Rosa, by the way. What's yours?" She asked.

Bucky paused for a moment, literally thinking do his name. Should go by James, because that's the name for him in the museum? Barnes, because it's a form of identification? There were a few possibilities, but one name seemed to fit the best. The name that, for once, edged him further away from HYDRA's control.

"Bucky. My name is Bucky"

* * *

 **Well, i managed to squeeze out a chapter for this, and basically worked on it all night(Mostly cause I couldn't sleep...), so hope you enjoy. What do you think of Rosa? Does she seem a little Mary-sue or anything like that? Do the character interactions seem right? I would really appreciate your opinion of her so far, and the story itself. I feel like their is always something to improve or work on, so it would be very helpful for a review. Anyways thanks for reading!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	5. Already(Almost) Gone

_You can do this Rosa...its just a machine, a-  
_  
"Well, that didn't work..." Rosa muttered, as she pulled out her 2nd credit card from the ATM. She stared blankly at its shiny, thick surface before she simply chucked it into a nearby trashcan.

She should have known, she should have thought of it. The bank would freeze her accounts _a_ nd money faster than she could stomp into the damned place and demand her cash. But that was just asking to get arrested. She just wanted to get a little cash, just enough to get some food and gas right before they left the city.

The sun started to rise with the idea of a fresh day, a new start. She only probably got only an hour of two of sleep, maybe less, and it started to beat down on her. She felt her eyelids grow heavy and her body felt weighted down, in need to rest. When she glanced to Bucky however, who stood a few feet off, looked...well, not exactly better than her, but seemed more attentive to everything. It was like he had a shot or two of espresso, minus the gibberish and shaky hands.

"Are you almost done?" Bucky asked, growing slightly impatient. Rosa said that these machines magically spit out money, considering he had close to no idea what an ATM was. He knew money was important to survival, but all he wanted to do was get out of the city and go to the safe house as fast as he could.

Rosa turned around with a raised brow "Maybe. Probably. I don't know. Just give me a few more minutes to figure this out" she turned back to the ATM, pulling out her wallet once more "Money doesn't grow on trees, but fraudulent credit cards do" she muttered beneath her breath.

She flipped the inner flap of the wallet, exposing at least 6 different cheap credit cards, with the PIN numbers written on a yellow piece of paper tucked inside. She sighed, and pulled one out.

She really couldn't take credit for the idea, no matter how much she pleaded and said she did; it was her now dead best friend's idea. Cliff thought about it, just in case of a huge emergency, in case they were caught by the government for any reason whatsoever, in case everything just went to hell, they had something to fall back on, in this case, money. Cliff just signed on to every bank he could think of under more fake names than he had fingers, and opened up an account for each one, putting a small amount of money in each account. When one account was drained, they would simply move on to the next one. It was practically foolproof.

Rosa eyes lit up in joy as she pulled out a thick wad of cash from the ATM, and stuffed it into her wallet. She figured she had a few days worth of cash until she had to make another 'transaction' from the bank of deceit and lies. She quickly pulled out the now worthless piece of plastic from the machine and snapped in in half with her fingers. She chucked it into the trash, and made her way back to the ex-Winter Soldier.

"I'm ready now" Rosa responded quietly, as she walked beside Bucky. In response, she got that seemingly unusual blank stare, as blank as his mind, she thought. In a weird way however, it gave her the answer she looked for.

"We should get out of the city," Bucky quietly said "Before it gets any brighter"

"Yeah, that's a good idea, except for the fact we don't have transportation. At all" Rosa pointed out "And there's no way I'm-we're gonna walk out. We'll be in a cell before its lunch time"

She cracked her knuckles and lazily shook them "So, let's go with the most obvious option. Have you ever stolen a car?"

Bucky replied with a suspicious raised brow. He wasn't so much worried about stealing a car as much as he was of the question of 'how?'

The brown haired girl raised her hands innocently in the air "Oh, I'm sorry, 'borrowed' a car. I have. Once. To be fair, I just held the tools, but that doesn't matter. Let's go"

Bucky followed far behind, and scanned around for something to 'borrow'. He's stolen a car in his days, mainly an enemy car in the war. One time he wired a jeep because someone(Steve) forgot the keys. Bucky remembered that time. He remembered even teaching Steve how to hotwire a car, and a few of the other Howling Commandos. It wasn't an important memory to figuring out his life, but it was certainly memorable one.

"Pray to god it's a cheap little Prius," Rosa muttered under her breath "Gas alone is gonna eat through my cash"

* * *

"Perfect" Rosa proudly exclaimed, as she looked at her soon-to-be new ride.

"This thing?" Bucky hesitantly said, doubtfully glancing at what looked like a cheap price of glorified plastic. It was a beaten up sedan, in need of a good wash and maybe a paint job in a few spots. It wasn't exactly the nicest car, but nice wasn't in the vocabulary of 'on the run'

Of course, he knew it was a car, he wasn't stupid. What he didn't understand how cars went from a nice, piece of American machinery to something that looked like it came out of a toy box. But as long as it got him from point A to point B, he couldn't complain.

She glanced at him with a raised brow of uncertainty "Of course. Are you looking to get a Rolls-Royce or something?"

All she got in response was a blank stare and awkward presence in the air. It wasn't that she was expecting a response or anything, it was that goddamn stare.

"Ok then..." She muttered awkwardly, and bent down on the ground. In front of the keyhole of the car. She placed her finger right in the middle of the large ring,and began to dig her finger into hit. She concentrated right on the key hole, like nothing else was around her. The veins in her hands began to glow softly, with a light orange inside. It ran to the tip of her finger, pushing the soft color through her veins. Her finger glowed a bright, orange and red hue, causing the thick, silver metal to surround her finger and pulsate out in a thick liquid. Seconds later, a thick layer to molten metal coated her finger, a click rang through the air.

She smiled, and pulled her finger out, shaking her hands around. Small drops of hot, liquid metal flew from her hands, splattering all over the car. Wiping the excess on her jacket, she simply tugged the handle, and the car door swiftly opened.

Bucky was in slight surprise that she managed to get the door open, without smashing it to hell. She was creative, he'll give Rosa that. Especially from what seemed like fire that flew from her hands. He was still confused at the fact how a person could get powers like that, but then again, he had a relatively normal looking metal arm that worked on cue. Anything was possible, he guessed.

One part down, one more to go Rosa thought in confidence with a grin. That soon washed away however when she realized, she had no idea what to do. She barely remembered how to hijack a car, let alone where to start. She squinted her eyes in thought, and tried to think back to a fun, but stupid memory.

 _Remember what Cliff did..._ She thought painfully. She thought back to a time where she was in that foster home, and her best friend was adventurous. So much even, he decided to take the foster care worker's car for a ride. She remembered feeling overly cautious about it, not wanting to get arrested, but somehow, Cliff managed to convince her. Rosa chuckled, remembering how the most reckless thing they did was just go through a drive through and order a couple burgers. Then at the foster care worker's face when they obliviously walked out her car, with freaking cup of soda in hand. Sure, Cliff and Rosa got in serious trouble, but she wouldn't give it up for anything.

Rosa drew her solemn eyes down to the cold, hard ground. Those stupid, fun adventures were never coming again, like her friend. She shook the thought out of her head, and focused back to the task at hand. She couldn't think of the past, not now, now with her future becoming a crapshoot. She couldn't have room in her head for formalities, little day dreams that took her from reality, when reality was hitting her, smacking her in the head.

If not, she was pretty sure Bucky could smack her back to reality. Literally or metaphorically. Both would have been fine.

She ripped off the large plastic sheet from under the steering wheel, exposing a bundle of wires.

Well shit... Rosa heart dropped to her stomach, at the amount of wires tucked in such a small space. She didn't even know where to start. But, with time not on her side, she sighed and swallowed her anxiety.

She knew it was going to be a bumpy ride.

Bucky looked in hesitantly at the brown haired girl as she shocked herself for the 5th time. All he saw was a mess of copper wires, all cut up and exposed, like a bundle of nerves. He examined Rosa as she carefully touched the tips of the wires together, as she was praying for engine to rev up. Bucky didn't know if he should take over or not, considering that he actually hot wired a car before, but from the 40's. On the other hand, he wasn't about to get burned to a crisp by the frustrated fire bender.

Rosa, in frustration, shoved two wires together, tired of her guessing game. She gritted her teeth and squinted her eyes as a spark of electricity ran from the copper through her fingers. Her eyes filled with anger, she threw the wires violently back into car and waved her hands around in utter frustration.

"God dammit!" She shouted into the sky. Suddenly, in her rage, her hands caught on fire. The flames danced around her hand in great, tall flames, burning her new gloves. With the smell of smoke, she widened her eyes at her burning gloves. Cursing under her breath, she shook her flaming hands around, trying to put out the flames.

With Rosa shaking her arms around like an idiot, Bucky immediately bent down to the exposed wires and examined the new mess of wires. A hint of familiarity filled his eyes, recognizing the basic wires from his time in World War II. The setup wasn't too different from that car he hijacked from long ago.

He turned around and glanced at Rosa, who was now stomping on her burning glove on the ground. He figured he had a few minutes before Rosa came back. It wasn't that he was fearful of what Rosa would do to him if he screwed up, he wasn't scared at all. It was because he needed his exposed hands; flesh, metal, all, to finish the work. It would be a different story if the angry brown haired girl figured out he was the Winter Soldier, the assassin. His metal arm was his ticket to jail.

But considering that Rosa hasn't figured it out so far, with a recognizable face like his, Bucky didn't feel too worried. So, with one more glance at Rosa, he turned back to the wires, and slipped off his gloves, exposing his shiny, metal hand.

After stomping her gloves to death, Rosa sighed and pathetically picked up a charred piece of cloth. What used to be a glove now was a black, jagged square of leather. She looked at it with tired eyes, examining at what protected her identity. She glared at the mocking tattoo on her right hand, something that could land her in serious trouble. She didn't know what Bucky would do is he saw it. She didn't know if he would simply glance over it like it was nothing, or examine it with his blank stare. She didn't know if Bucky would start asking questions about it, start getting suspicious.

It was something that could rip this already weak alliance apart.

Suddenly, a loud, rumbling sound sliced through the air. Rosa's head snapped up, and saw Bucky knelt on the ground, next to the pile of wires. She gave a sigh of utter relief, and chucked the price of burnt cloth away.

Bucky quickly slipped his gloves back on, and slowly got back to his feet. He glanced at Rosa, who had a look of surprise on her face, along with a grin of joy.

"It's working now" Bucky said, as she slammed the door shut. Rosa looked with slight surprise on her face, that the weird, homeless guy who barely said anything actually got the car working. Her face of joy shifted into curiosity from suspicion.

"So, you did it..." She said in a stern tone "Hey, if you knew how to hotwire the car, why didn't you just say?"

Bucky only shrugged, and gave her that empty stare that signaled Rosa, that he wouldn't give a full answer. To be fair, he didn't know if he could even hotwire it in the first place, but he could tell Rosa that. So, he kept his mouth shut, and examined his options.

Rosa tried to do the same, look into Bucky's steel blue eyes with a blank stare, but she simply couldn't. It was like his eyes were locked up, deprived of any emotion. The only thing she got from his stares were underlying tones of curiosity, like The man was watching her every move. She hated it, but it was something she had to shrug off, especially if he wanted to keep him around.

She, in thoughts of Bucky's motives, immediately stuck her right hand in her pocket, hiding her little number tattoo from view. She immediately drew her eyes to the Winter Soldier's thick gloves, internally begging to wear one. Because she knew it would get awkward when that tattoo would start staring right at Bucky when she started to drive. All she needed was one, just a right hand glove. Maybe he wouldn't mind.

She lifted her eyes to Bucky "If you don't mind, I know this might seem strange, but can I borrow you right glove? Just until I can get a new pair?"

Bucky drew his eyes to his thick, black gloves, then quickly to the brown haired girl. A hint of curiosity pierced his eyes, in suspicion.

"Why do you need it?" Bucky asked.

Rosa was at a loss for words. She actually didn't expect him to respond at all, maybe with a negative response, but not a question. In her frazzled state of mind, She immediately shot back another question.

"Do you need them in the first place?" She questioned with suspicion "It's not even cold"

"Why do you only need one glove?"

Rosa sighed and held her temple in frustration. She already knew this alliance wasn't already working out. Suspicion wasn't going to get them anywhere, only away from each other. As much as she would have liked to argue, she wanted Bucky around. She wanted, someone who knew how to beat up people to a pulp, a bodyguard, while she stood in the background. She just wanted to use him, like a tool.

But a feeling inside tugged at her too, a feeling of loneliness. A little bit of her just wanted someone to talk to.

Bucky's just wanted to get to point A to point B, to the so called safe house. But his suspicion grew. It was like each time Rosa got suspicion of him, he grew more suspicious of her. He knew this so called relationship wasn't built on trust at all, it was built on faith and convince. But Bucky realized that a little trust was needed, just to keep everything together. But could he?

Rosa gave out a loud groan of frustration, and walked up closer to Bucky, nearly face to face. Bucky looked back with an intense stare, tightening his hand in anxiety.

"I know we don't trust each other much, hell, I'm a little afraid you're gonna slice my throat in my sleep, but let's at least trust that we got a few secrets under our belt. Let's respect that at least, ok?"

Rosa sighed, and painfully looked into his intense, steel eyes "I wanna trust you a little, enough to get through this trip. Can you do the same for me?"

Bucky's eyes flicked with curiosity once more, as he stared right into Rosa's light brown eyes. They seemed to be filled with disparity, with honestly, like she full hardheartedly wanted to try to work this out.

It was a look he only saw in children.

The ex-Winter Soldier slowly pulled his glove from his right hand, and handed it to Rosa. Her eyes lit up surprise, but shifted to warm, comfortable joy. She gave a tight grin, and lightly lifted the glove from his hand.

"Thanks" Rosa said with a small nod, and immediately slipped the glove on her hand. It was a little loose and big, but she had nothing to complain about.

Bucky gave a nod in response, and drew his eyes to the car "We should get going"

Rosa nodded, and opened the car door "Well, let's go"

* * *

 **Yeah, this was a short chapter, but next one should be longer. Also, just a heads up, I'm starting school soon, and that may affect the updating schedule. I might be able to post one chapter of one fic once a week instead of updating all of them one i start school, depending on my work load(Last year of high school then I'm FREE!). This shouldn't matter for the few first week of September, but after that, it's anybody's guess. I hope you understand.**

 **Again, w** **hat do you think of Rosa? Does she seem a little Mary-sue or anything like that? Do the character interactions seem right? I would really appreciate your opinion of her so far, and the story itself. I feel like their is always something to improve or work on, so it would be very helpful for a review.**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	6. Empty Spaces(Worn Out Faces)

_...I'm dreaming of a white Christmas  
Just like the ones I used to know  
Where the treetops glisten...  
_  
Steve ears filled with the soft sound of the singer's, deep, reminiscing voice, as he watched the Sokovia footage. He sat extremely slouched on his bed, lightly twiddling his fingers around his palm. The T.V in front of him was set on mute, but the horrific scenes of buildings falling and crumbling like paper was enough to him. His clear, blue eyes barely registered to the T.V, shielding the turmoil deep within his mind.

It was only days after Sokovia, days after Tony built a 'murder bot' that threatened humanity and the structure of the team itself. Steve thought he would get over it, not brush it off, but at least be able to do his duties to train the new Avengers. But, it seemed like he closed himself off from the world, only watching the footage over and over again, studying it like he could fix it.

He didn't know what rubbed him the wrong way, what caused him to take himself hostage in his own room. Apart of him said it was because of Tony. He did create something that caused so many people to perish, including someone close to one of the New Avengers. But everyone makes mistakes, some bigger than others. The Sokovia incident was put to rest, much like the evil metal man, Ultron.

But a smaller, deeper part of him said it was because of his past. Everything was so simple back then. He fought the Nazi's, from which HYDRA came, made clear plans, and executed them simply, but most of all, he had someone to count on, someone he knew always had his back. With the Avengers however, it wasn't as clear to him.

Sam was a great friend, the most honest, and trustworthy person Steve's met his this new era, but he was far from replacing Bucky. Bucky was there in his ups and down, and helped him no matter what. Bucky knew the scrawny, Brooklyn kid Steve was born as, and was for most of his conscious life.

Maybe he just wanted Bucky back, someone to push him back to his feet, but even Steve knew that was far from possible, but with the state Bucky's in. The Winter Soldier was only an empty shell of his friend, wearing his friends face. Shards of Bucky glimmered through, but they were too small to be put back together. All Steve wanted to do was build him back up, help him become what he once was;a person.

The door slightly squeaked behind the blond man, causing him to snap his head up, and turn his head. Sam's head barely peaked out, cautious of Steve.

"It's ok if I come in?" Sam asked, his eyes immediately drawing to the T.V screen.

"Go ahead" Steve said, with a light, fake grin on his face. Sam nodded, and quietly stepped across his room, the music blaring over his footsteps.

After only the first day, Sam we already concerned about Steve's new state of mind. It wasn't like him to just lock himself up in his room and do absolutely nothing. The first day after Sokovia, Steve was perfectly fine, eager to her straight into training. It was only after he slowly tumbled to this cycle of depression. And that's not Steve.

Sam sighed, and took it upon himself to change things. He grabbed the remote from the table and clicked of the T.V. He chucked the remote on to the bed, bouncing along as he sat on the edge of the bed. The music still lightly played in the background, a drastically different mood that filled the new, tense air. Steve immediately twisted his head towards Sam, who simply shrugged in response.

"I'm fine Sam" Steve said, answering his friend's hidden question

"Steve, you've been in here since a day ago. I didn't even see you come out to eat or anything. Not even Wanda is as bad as you. AND your playing Christmas music in May. Man, you are not fine"

Steve raised his brow "I know you're concerned, but I'll be good" He sighed, and looked down "I just let these things about Ultron get to my head, that all"

"Right, because Christmas and Sokovia footage go together with Ultron" Sam sarcastically replied "Tell me what's really going on"

Steve glanced briefly at Sam, but put his head back down in the sand "Ultron took a big hit on the team. It's...an inconvenience right now" Steve briefly confessed, but Sam still didn't buy it.

"I can understand Sokovia, but what about this?" Sam pointed up and paused, letting the classic song to fill the ears of both the Soldiers.

Steve lifted his head "White Christmas...You know?"

Sam scoffed "Of course"

"I remember the first time I heard this song, I mean, really listened to it. I was in the camps, with Bucky. It was the night of when we came back, after I got him back from the HYDRA facility. A few others sat with us in a tent drinking down whiskey and beer in celebration. The others were blindly drunk, but Buck and I just...sat, and this was playing"

He smiled weakly "I should have known then, it was obvious HYDRA did something to him. After a flask or two, we were sober. He was shaken from HYDRA, I was, well, angry. We just wanted to get drunk, that's all. We just listened cause it was the only thing we could do"

Sam eyes flicked with pity for Steve. Although Steve's intentions were buried deep within him, it was obvious to Sam that he just wanted Bucky.

"Steve, we'll find Barnes sooner or later" Sam assured "The dude can't hide forever"

"It depends who finds him, that's what I'm worried about" Steve replied in a soft voice.

Sam shrugged "We can't do much about that. Besides, he hasn't done anything that we know of in the past year, other than almost kill the both of us"

Steve raised his brow, causing Sam to raise his hands in defense.

"I know, I know, mind control. That Winter Soldier programming or whatever they call it"

Steve sighed, and bent down his head again "Bucky's still in there, the one I grew up with, I know it. It's just how much HYDRA messed with him"

For moments, since laid between the two friends. Although Sam tried to help as much as he could, Steve knew he only attached the surface of his turmoil. It should have been simple; all he wanted was Bucky, but it was much more complicated than that. Steve wanted the old Bucky back, but seeing the Winter Soldier, he didn't know if he could.

The sound of the door swiftly opening caused the two soldiers to snap their heads up. At the door, Rhodey barely entered the room.

"Steve, someone's here to see you" Rhodey said.

"Thank you. I'll be there in five" Steve replied.

"It's Agent Carter. She says it's urgent"

* * *

"Agent Carter," Steve greeted "It's been a while"

"It has, hasn't it?" Sharon nodded, with a smile "We don't have to be very formal, Sharon is fine"

"Then Sharon," Steve quickly nodded "How has the work in the CIA been?"

"It's been good, they keep me busy. It's keeps me employed, I suppose. It's been busier ever since Sokovia happened"

Steve put a tight smile on his face "It will roll over soon enough, won't it?"

Sharon replied with a quick nod, falsely agreeing with him. It took months just to get the SHIELD incident over. This wasn't any different. So, instead, she came straight to the point.

"It was nice catching up, but I'm here for other matters" Sharon explained "If you want to get your team together, I can debrief all of you"

"How serious is this?" Steve asked, furrowing his brow.

"Well," Sharon took a big step back, towards the door "That's depends on your attachment to the plan"

Steve felt a little confused, shooting the blond agent a suspicious glance "What is that supposed to mean?"

Sharon replied with a tight, lifeless smile "Let's just say it might be a little personal.

Taking Sharon's comment with absolutely no nonsense, he chose to talk with her alone. As Sharon stood next to a large screen, with a thick file in tucked under her arm, Steve sat down, leaning back in his seat in curiosity.

Sharon glanced towards the screen, and clicked a button in her hand, causing a photo of that familiar car crash to pop up.

"Last night, the CIA went to investigate a suspected fatal car crash, the details before that don't matter too much, but it was not because of the deceased, but because of the suspect" Sharon clicked on the same video, showing the same girl, the same flames, and the same car blowing up.

"Enhanced with Pyrokinesis, the suspect, deliberately blew up the perpetrators car after the deceased died, killing 2 and critically hurting the two others"

With another click, photos depicted the two remaining survivors, hooked up to countless machines, hanging to their life by a thread. Horrible, patchy burns scattered around their bodies. Thick, coats of black skin peeled off, exposing dark, red flesh. They didn't even have to scream in pain; their eyes red well enough.

"What's her name?" Steve asked, with a hesitant curiosity in her voice.

"Rosalind Alvarez. She lived on the outskirts of D.C, along with a Radcliff Tyler Smithson, who is the deceased"

Steve could easily put her motive together. She was a mixing pot of high strung emotions, filled to the point where she had to explode. Unfortunately, the at came in the form of killing and hurting what seemed like innocent people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Steve simply saw a young woman who couldn't handle her new pain. But that didn't give her any right to take it out on others.

"That same night, my team located her via cellphone, and we found another long long suspect at the scene. One of our body cams captured this"

She clicked the remote, and a shaky, dark video emerged on the screen. Shadows crawled on the walls, as agent after agent were thrown to the ground. The fire bender emerged on screen, with her curled up fists lit up. What caught Steve attention though was how fearful she looked. Expecting that same old one dimensional bad guy who took out their anger on others, like the video depicted, he didn't quite think of someone who was just being defensive. Her wide, open eyes, shaky, flaming fists, and open jaw only read one emotion to Steve. Terror.

Suddenly, the camera swung around, revealing a large, long haired man. His face was hidden by his long, sweaty hair, revealing only his steel blue eyes. The man planted his thick boot into the agents stomach, causing the camera view the widen drastically. As the shakiness settled, the man lifted his head, revealing his familiar face. Steve's clear blue eyes widened.

Bucky.

The video cut, leaving an empty, blank screen in its wake "Sergeant Barnes was also found at the scene, fighting along side with Alvarez. Due to this, we suspect they are both working together"

Steve could hardly believe it. After a little over a year, Bucky just suddenly popped up from hiding, working with a vigilante. Bucky was somewhat a vigilante himself, considering he simply went into hiding instead of facing the world. And a court.

"What do you want?" Steve said coldly.

"The CIA is prepared to make you and your team a deal. We don't know the extent of Alvarez's powers, or if she will attack again, so we need to detain her. Since we suspect Barnes is traveling along with her, you will see him again. If you help us find and detain her, Barnes is yours. He will most likely still need to go through the judicial system because of his past actions, but since he was mind controlled under HYDRA, from what was documented. It's highly unlikely he'll actually be convicted of anything"

"Will he able to stay here?" Steve asked hopefully.

Sharon nodded "He could after a psychological evaluation, so within a day after we get him. Depending on his test's, rehabilitation may be needed, but you'll be able to stay with him as long as you would like"

"What about resources?"

"You'll be able to use anything the CIA provides you, including evidence, of course after we document it. For example, at the suspect's apartment, we found a laptop that may give you a few TIPS. We haven't been able to crack it, but Stark might be able to.

Steve glanced down at the table, leaning on his fist in thought. It was so simple. Find the girl, find Bucky. Although the plan seemed too good to be true, Steve let his emotions blind him. Bucky filled his mind more than anything else, and he just wanted him with him again. He couldn't bear to lose him again.

Steve lifted himself from the table and stood in front of Sharon. Although his expression was as blank as a slate, inside he was overcome with hope. So, he stuck out his hand, for a handshake.

"You have a deal"

* * *

 **Thank you to guest and Lucifer's711 for your review!**

 **I put in the song for a reason, and it actually makes sense, oddly enough. If you didn't know, _White Christmas_ is by Bing Crosby and is considered the best selling single of all time, and was played a lot during World War II in the camps, mostly in Europe. It just kinda spread to other people other than Americans, and just became really popular. So, Steve and Bucky probably heard this song a few times around the camps, even if it wasn't near Christmas time. It was considered more of an uplifting song, so that's what probably made it popular.**

 **Anyways, hope you enjoyed! Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	7. Postcards(Not) From Italy(From England)

"Do ya need any help there kid?" An elderly gentleman asked as he hobbled across the small aisle of the small gas station.

Rosa lifted her head up and replied with a friendly smile "Oh no Thank you. I'm just looking around"

"Tell me if ya do" The friendly man nodded, and walked away slowly with his cane.

"Will do" She waved back to the man in question, and turned her attention back on the assortment of maps. The light smile on her face slowly dissipated as her eyes concentrated on the titles of the maps. Finally, she pulled one out of its resting place, and began to unfold it.

Holy shit… She thought in surprise, as her eyes widened in utter shock. She must have not looked at a map in a while, because to her, everything was just a jumble of dots and lines. A few familiar locations stood out her, but she had no idea how to get there. Hell, she didn't even know if she was holding it the right way.

Sighing, she tightly chewed her lip and carefully folded the map back.

"Bucky!" She yelled across the small store, causing him to whip his head around.

"Yeah?" He asked in a level, calm tone.

"How are you doing on the list? " She shouted, as she went on her tips-toes and frantically snapped her head around like a radar, to search for the long haired man.

"I'm fine" He replied, as his attention went back to the line of cans on the shelf.

He glanced back at the extensive list Rosa wrote down, the "necessary" items for people on the run, as she called it. Bucky didn't know how mouthwash or a thing called hairspray fit into that category, but he wasn't about to argue about it. He was a man of few words, but Rosa was a woman of too many. She might as well write a book about it, if she had the patience to do so.

Looking at his list, he picked up a few bags of beef jerky and slid it under his arm. He still couldn't believe, even after a year, how ridiculous the prices were these days. Back in his time, he could buy the same thing for a couple pennies, not nearly 4.00. It wasn't helpful to him whatsoever, but it was the one thing he remembered, almost immediately after he escaped HYDRA.

Bucky carelessly scanned through the aisle of food and items, quickly glancing through the she keys for the next item. Right before he was about to move on to the next aisle, something caught his eye. He froze in place, and slowly walked up to a small, square aluminum can. It should have been like any other can, but something seemed familiar about it, it's curved, square shape, the small metal hook indented in the can. Curious, he leaned into the line of cans, and read the yellow, block lettering

Spam.

" _God Steve, this again?" Bucky suspiciously eyed the canned meat, carefully twisting the metal can in his hands, like it was a foreign object of another world. To him, it might as well have been._

 _The two, soldiers sat together in a simple tent, with a flickering light that barely lit up the tent. The sun barely peaked over thick trees, giving the entire camp a fresh new start. Why not start off the new day with a good ol' can of spam?_

 _Bucky didn't understand how Steve could tolerate the franken-meat, let alone enjoy it. Bucky assumed he had to eat a little more, for his new acquired size and muscles, but it didn't explain the fact that Steve practically inhaled the 3rd can of the stuff in a matter of minutes._

 _"Come on Bucky, it's not that bad" Steve shrugged, as he put another fork full in his mouth._

 _He raised his eyebrow in disgust "That's easy for you to say. You gotta eat, like what now?"_

 _"Carter's orders," Steve innocently shrugged with a grin "I can't go against orders"_

 _Bucky chuckled "Says the punk who ran into a HYDRA facility unarmed, with a flimsy shield and a tin can over his head"_

 _"I was alright. The helmet did its job"_

 _Steve." He shook his head in disappointment "Steve! I could dent the damn thing with my thumb!"_

 _"I did the job. I got everyone out, destroyed the facility, and met the man behind all of this" The blond man pointed out_

 _Bucky titled his head in agreement "Fair enough..." He chuckled, and took a sip of water from his canteen "I'm gonna have to buy a leash for you, aren't I?"_

 _Steve grinned, with with raised brow "What's that supposed to mean?"_

 _"You were already reckless before..." Bucky pointed to his massive arms "this happened. Now that you're bigger, God knows what trouble you're gonna get into"_

 _Steve shook his head with a tight lip "I won't be that bad, Buck"_

 _Bucky snorted "Right. Next time we go out on the field again, you're gonna be going head first in the line of fire. Maybe do something stupid, like jump outta a plane without a parachute or something"_

 _"Jerk"_

 _"Punk"_

 _The two soldiers only laughed, gripping tightly on each other's soldiers as their laughter slowly rolled away. A warm, comfortable pause went between the two, as they continued eating their canned meal. Bucky glanced back at the new Steve for a few seconds. He could barely comprehend his friend's new size. It was like only yesterday he was that kid he had to rescue from an alley from a bully. And Bucky knew it wouldn't be the last time he would have to do that._

 _After suffering through a few bites of the suspicious meat, the brown haired man set the can aside and took a big gulp of water to wash out it's up our flavor._

 _"So, how's it being like this?" Bucky asked._

 _"Like what?"_

 _He paused "...big"_

 _Steve titled his head down in thought, as he loosely gripped his can of Spam "It takes some time getting used to. I don't think I'm used to this yet," Steve lightly ran his fingers over his bulging arm muscles "And it's been a while"_

 _"Really?" Bucky raised his brows in surprise "How long?"_

 _"I think...2 months? More or less"_

 _Bucky couldn't hide the surprise that covered his face, even as he tried to hide it by taking a sip of water "I must have been in that facility for a while..." The warm smile gradually disappeared from his happy face, and shifted into a one of solemn and gloom._

 _Steve took on the same mood, easily reading his friends face "Do you remember what they did?"_

 _The brown haired soldier squinted his eyes in thought "I don't remember much...Just a few shots, and pain...but the rest is just a blur..." He gave a tired sigh "They did some bad stuff in there, Steve. I wouldn't even want the guys who beat you up to go what some people did. They looked like innocent people who got caught up in the crossfire. They didn't even have a chance"_

 _Bucky tilted his head, with a tight, lifeless smile on his face. He knew he wouldn't be able to forget anything he saw in that facility. Those HYDRA people were only treating him as nothing more than a lab rat, maybe even less. He saw the bodies that were thrown around like rag dolls, only to be thrown around later. He saw how human life couldn't be considered precious anymore, and that was what really killed him._

 _"I don't know what they did to me, but if I go back there, I don't think I'll survive"_

Bucky took another long, hard stare at the can of meat on the shelf, with a light, tight lipped smile on his face. He didn't even remember the taste of Spam, but he sure knew he had a vengeance against it, and with a passion. But before he knew it, he swiped the cans off their shelves and carried them, along with the list.

Rosa intensely scanned the new, fresh map in her hand, trying to read it to the best of her ability. Although the map was a little more understandable to her than the last few, she knew she was going to have to ask for directions from time to time.

She shrugged in defeat, and carefully folded up the map once more. With the sound of footsteps, she titled her head up to Bucky as his many cans of franken-meat in his hand. She immediately froze in confusion, raising her brow in suspicious.

"Um...Bucky?" Rosa asked in a slow, clear voice.

"Yeah?" He replied blankly, like he did absolutely nothing.

"...Why the hell do you have a ridiculous amount of Spam?" Rosa pointed to his arms full of the cans.

Bucky shrugged in response, then glanced down to his arms "I want it"

Rosa shot him a look of utter confusion, but quickly shook it off "Ok then. If you want it, I guess" She picked up a few cans from his arms "We're taking a few, not for an entire freaking army"

Internally, Bucky lightly chuckled at that thought, but on the outside, he gave a slight nod and proceeded to dump the rest of the Spam back on the shelves. By the time he came back, Rosa stood at the counter, placing her items on the table.

Bucky stood close by the brown haired girl, and started off into the distance into the lightly stained wall. Rosa couldn't tell if he had a thought in that little pretty head of his, or if his mind was always on, like a child's. He was...uncertain to Rosa, which only made her feel uncertain herself. But as long as he was helpful and protected her, she couldn't complain too much.

As the Winter Soldier's mind began to empty a little, the throbbing in his shoulder increased. Since he had that bullet in his shoulder, Bucky could easily handle the pain of it. It was part of his training, anyways. He expected however the pounding, throbbing pain in his shoulder to become a light ache, like it usually did. But this would didn't.

He strained his arm and lights poked at his shoulder, causing him to grimace in a shot of stinging pain. A pounding heart beat began to form and crawl into his hurt shoulder, making a pit of anxiety form in his stomach.

"I'll be back" Bucky muttered quickly as he walked fast towards the bathroom.

"What?" Rosa snapped her head around "Where are yo- oh..."

Bucky slammed the door behind him and pulled his shirt off, and threw it on the floor. He turned his aching shoulder towards the mirror, and squinted his eyes in anxiety. The small, shiny bullet peaked out from a small mountain of flesh that cased the bullet. Angry, red marks circled around the metal object, swelling around its prey. Dark, hot blood oozed from the wound, encasing the bullet like a small lake.

Bucky wasn't a doctor or anything, but he didn't need one to tell this wound wasn't very good, to say in the least.

Rosa randomly glanced around the gas station, as the elderly owner carefully scanned her items. She lightly tapped her fingers against the counter, waiting for the brown haired man who seemed to lock himself in that bathroom. She hoped that breakfast burrito had nothing to do with it...

"Where are ya headed kid?" The man asked with a small, crooked grin.

She smiled "Just outta town"

His eyes lit up "Oh, You from around here then?"

"No, Arizona actually. A small city near the outskirts of Phoenix. I'm visiting family"

"Is the long haired fellow your..." He trailed off.

"No, no" she raised her hands in defense' shaking her head frantically "He's just a hitchhiker heading to the same place I am"

The man raised his brow "Ya better be careful of those guys. You don't know what they'll do to someone like you"

"I think I have it under control. He's kinda nice, really quiet, and won't get us in any trouble"

"You know, it's the quiet fellows who always have something else goin' on. They're not like they look to be" The man warned.

She shrugged "If he does something, I'll just dump him along the road"

"Ok then," The man said with a tinge of suspicion in his voice "I'm just sayin' be careful"

She replied with another fake smile again "Thank you, I will"

She felt a little annoyed with the man warnings, digging into her life, yet she couldn't take them for granted either. To her, Bucky seemed unpredictable, like he was ready to attack at any second. Who knows what he's thinking, if at all.

She heard the light sound of footsteps trail towards her, as she handed the energy man his money. Her shoulders seemed to tense up as the footsteps got louder and louder, as though she was prepared to run like hell.

"Are you done?" Bucky asked in a gruff voice.

Rosa closed her eyes, and gave a deep sigh "Almost"

She quickly handed the money to the elderly man and proceed to snatch up her bags and quickly walk out of the gas station. Right when she got outside, she took another deep breath in the hot, humid air.

Bucky could easily see Rosa's tense mood, it would have been obvious to anyone he thought. Why she was like that, he could come up with a few reasons, but in reality, he couldn't do much about it. As long as she didn't explode in anger in frustration and burn something down, he was going to take that small car all the way to that safehouse.

Rosa tossed the bag on top of the hood of the car and pulled out the map, opening it's crispy paper and flattening it out. Taking another glance at the map, she calculated a vague idea of the route.

Bucky beside her scanned the map carefully, judging the route as she lightly traced her fingers over the paper.

"Ok, So, we need to get from here" She pointed near D.C "To here" She dragged her finger just over the Canadian border "I'm thinking about two days if we both take turns driving. We'll figure out the other details later"

Bucky nodded "I can take the night"

"Or when ever I get tired will probably be when time. Unless I drink a crap load of coffee, not that we can really afford that now..."

She chewed her lip in tense thought, trying to plan out the trip. Almost everything worried her and made a pit form in her stomach, to getting pulled over, to buying food. Hell, going into the gas station made her feel as though a cop was going to pop out at any second. She didn't want to see another cop or government authority again, out for her hide. Because if she did, she knew she could make that explosion she caused look like a toy bomb, and she desperately didn't want to. She didn't need another reason to be locked up in a small box for the rest of her life, or something else to stain her soul.

Bucky felt the air tense up, as Rosa tightly clung her fist at the edge of the map, staring at it with frustration. Feeling a little weary of her unpredictable mod, he took a small step to the side.

Rosa snapped out of her thoughts, and sighed at the sight of her trembling fist wrapped up in paper. She blankly stared at the map as she carefully folded it back up and chucked it back into the bag. She was sure by now the homeless brown haired man noticed her foul, dreary mood, it was painfully obvious to her.

"Sorry about...well this" She pointed lazily to herself "I'm just a little anxious about this"

Bucky looked back to her blankly, but for Rosa, his steel blue eyes said something different.

"Ok, maybe a lot"

He shrugged "It takes some time getting used to"

"Are you saying you're always anxious?"

He looked down and squinted in thought. Considering he was an ex-assassin took away so many lives under his hand, but not under his mind, he had the right to be. There could be so many others out to kill him, and not only the government. There was no where he could be entirely safe, but some places were better than others

He lifted his head again "Yeah. A lot"

Rosa's look softened, and drew her eyes down to the hood of the car "How do you deal with it?

"You don't. You just live with it"

"Oh…" She paused, and opened the door of the car "If you want to take the night shift right now" She pointed to the driver seat. Bucky nodded, and settled inside, along with Rosa.

"If I fall asleep, just tell me when we're near the state border" She quietly said, as she faced towards the window. Even though she couldn't see Bucky, he nodded anyways.

He thoughts became muddled as her eyes blankly stared at the long landscape ahead. Even if she wasn't driving, it didn't mean she could really relax and rest. She couldn't afford that at all.

* * *

 **Thank you Guest, FireflyUpintheSky, and Lucifer's711 for your reviews!**

 **More research(yay?). If you didn't know, Spam was really common out in the camps in World War II. It was cheaper to buy and easy to eat, and was even called meatloaf that didn't pass inspection or something. I figure since Steve metabolism is crazy high, Spam became his new best friend. For Bucky? Not so much.**

 **Anyways, I'm starting school tomorrow, so that means I'll have the change the updates to the weekend. Depending on how much free time I have, I MIGHT be able to update this weekend, but most likely it'll be next weekend. Thanks for understanding.**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	8. Life In The Fast Lane(Isn't it Always?)

Bucky glanced back at the huge, spanning state that was once home - well, more like a refuge. Although he only lived in his little, dank basement house for a little over a year, it was something that he felt comfortable in. But Bucky knew better than to get attached to things easily: it would simply be snatched away from him. The refuge was good for the time being, but even he knew he need something a little more...remote.

He just hoped Rosa would get him to the safehouse before the government caught up with him, or at least before the firebender found another thing to burn. He knew it wasn't exactly a comfort to ride along with her, but her promise outweighed the nervous ball that weighed down his stomach. Besides, Bucky had learned to ignore that feeling long before he became the Winter Soldier

"Hey Bucky"

Bucky snapped his out of his thoughts and twisted his head, to see that brown haired girl on the other side of the car window. She opened the door, and settled into the driver's seat. In her hand, she held a large, white paper bag, with small, spotty grease stains that sat near the bottom of the bag.

"I didn't know what you wanted for breakfast, so I just got you this" Rosa uncrumpled the bag and pulled out a thick, hefty breakfast burrito. Steam rolled out from it's paper packaging as she carefully unrolled the top, letting the smell of cheese and eggs fill the air.

Bucky hesitantly grabbed the burrito out from her hand, and went to suspiciously inspect his meal. He's seen people eat burritos on the street before; he knew what it was, but he never actually ate one. So, it was a surprise to him when he was handed one wrapped around in a white, cheap paper.

Rosa sent an awkward look to the long haired man, wondering what the hell he was doing staring at at burrito. It was like he never saw one before.

"Are you just gonna look at it or…" Rosa trailed off

The ex-Winter Soldier sent Rosa a small, harmless glare before he glanced back at the burrito. It was just food, fuel. He thought food was only substance to sustain his life, not something to sit back and enjoy. So, he but off a reasonable chunk off and chewed the hot food slowly within his mouth. He mentally shrugged at its hearty flavor. As long as it didn't taste like it came from the floor, he couldn't complain.

"See, it's fine" Rosa smirked, as she grabbed another hot burrito from the bag and ripped of its paper wrapping.

"Thank you" Bucky said, before he took another bite. Rosa gave a small grin, before she chomped through the tortilla.

"Your welcome. I bought 5 of them if you want another one too" She replied, as she chewed through the hot eggs.

As much as she wanted to use her money sparingly, she knew food wouldn't fit into the category, at least she thought for herself. Her powers drained her like a battery; the more she used them, the more energy they used, and unfortunately, that energy came in the form of food. It was always that extra slice of pizza or that extra pancake, if she didn't use them at all. But when she lit up her hands or her body for that matter, it was a different story.

Bucky gave a small nod, and turned his head back to the window. Tall, brick buildings flew past him, shifting the old, colonial atmosphere into a large, open highway. Buildings turned into grey walls, with ivy crawling up it's surface. Cars beside him came and went, like the wind.

What really struck him though was how everything had changed. He hadn't had much of a chance to see the changing world around him when he was under HYDRA. He did a mission, and went under cryo, it was a simple as that. It was only now that he had gotten the chance to dive into his era head first, whether he liked it or not.

Rosa eye's were peeled on the road, watching as the white, dotted lines swiftly passed her view. She figured in a few hours, she would be safe enough to go outside without getting trampled by cops at first sight. Although the lack of sleep weighted her down, it was anxiety that drove her.

Bucky could easily see her nervousness. The way Rosa dug her nails into the steering wheel, was an obvious sign. The way she barely blinked also set him off. But he knew he couldn't do much. It was something she just had to deal with.

With a silent sigh, Rosa slightly turned her head to the brown haired man "Once we get out of the state, we should get a map, and probably some supplies. I only know the highways near D.C, so I'm really going to need one"

Bucky nodded, leaving a familiar silence to fill the air. Bucky liked it. For Rosa, it only increased her already anxious mood. She constantly bit her lip, shy about the awkward silence. She preferred conversation, music, noise, just something to pleasantly flow through her ears, not the sound of an old engine. Not only was it relaxing, it helped distract her thoughts. And that's what she really needed.

"So, umm...Are you good?" Rosa asked strangely, sounding like she was questioning her own question more than anything else.

"Sure" Bucky replied, quietly and quickly.

"That's good, really good..." Rosa trailed off, carefully crafting another question. She lightly drummed her fingers against the steering wheel, in thought.

"Do you care if I turn on the radio? The silence is killing me" Rosa confessed, slightly turning her head at Bucky.

He gave a careless shrug "It doesn't matter"

She gave a slight nod, and lightly turned the knob, powering the radio to life. For the first few clicks, it was simple radio jingles and advertisements, other turns, songs she never heard of or didn't care for. With a few more turns, a soft, light beat sprang to life, causing her to lightly nod to herself, and put her hand back onto the wheel.

The song at first went over Bucky's head, but as the simple song went on, it slowly dragged in Bucky's ears and thoughts and took him for a ride. He slowly was sucked into the tune, the voice that was telling a story. His eyes flicked with curiosity, as his thoughts as well. For Bucky, it was the first time in a while that his thoughts went to something that wasn't biased on survival; it was something meant for enjoyment and thought.

 _I was following the pack,_

 _all swallowed in their coats_

 _With scarves of red tied 'round their throats_

 _To keep their little heads from falling in the snow, and I turned 'round and there you go_

 _And Michael you would fall_

 _and turn the white snow red as strawberries in the summertime_

Rosa lightly tapped her fingers in rhythm of the song, lightly humming the tune under her breath. Her breathing slowed down as she began to relax her body, for the first time since her life went to hell. She cherished it, the feeling where her stomach didn't feel queasy or when it felt weighed down. She could count on that music wouldn't go out to screw her up, unlike everything else.

She touched the knob and turned down the radio "Not many people know this song, do you?" She asked, causing Bucky to reply with a gentle shake of his head.

"It's called White Winter Hymnal," she practically whispered "It's catchy, but...It's different"

She simply shrugged the thought off, and turned up the radio again, causing the song to fill the air.

A few hours and traffic jams later, Rosa pulled into a small gas station, parking it next to the pump.

Turning off the engine, she turned to Bucky "If you need a bathroom break, this is the time to do it"

"I'm fine" Bucky replied blankly.

She twisted her head in suspicion "You sure…"

Bucky paused for a few seconds, then slowly opened the door, and stepped out of the car. With no real response, Rosa shrugged and got out of the car too.

As Rosa attempted to shove the the gas nose into her 'borrowed' car, Bucky walked into the store and quickly passed through to the bathroom. Feeling the dull ache in his shoulder still throb away, he pulled his shirt off and chucked it on the floor.

He ran his fingers carefully around the bullet wound, trying not to irritate it as much as it already was. The red ring around the metal shard subsides, and turned into a fleshy pink, but the swelling seemed the same to the Winter Soldier. He couldn't tell exactly if it looked better or not, but as long as the pain didn't increase, it was good news to him.

He sighed at the sight of his wound, and grabbed a paper towel. He soaked it in water and gently rubbed the bullet wound, in hopes of doing something for it. A prick of sharp pain crawled through his shoulder, causing him to tightly bite his lip. When he lifted the paper towel of his wound however, a deformed, dark red circle emerged, soaked up with all his dried up blood. He hoped that was a sign of recovery, because if it wasn't, he didn't have many options to help it.

Rosa, leaving the gas to pump away into the car, mindlessly started at the variety of cheap hats that were hung inside the shop. With blank, half-lidded eyes, she carelessly swung the hat shelf around, staring at their scratchy fabric.

Knowing she would probably need one sooner or later, she took one off the rack and stuffed one onto her head. Although it was as tight as hell, comfort wasn't much of an option.

As she went through the hats, Bucky emerged from the bathroom, with a thick layer of paper towels under his shirt. He was lucky his shirt was a deep dark red, like the blood seeping from his body.

He glanced carefully outside the shop, not expecting anything. However when his eyes scanned the car, he froze. He carefully and swiftly backed away from the window, and hid behind another rack of hats, hiding from who knows what.

Outside, sat a cop car, with a cop suspiciously inspecting the small, stolen car. The cop slowly circled the car, with a notepad in hand, scribbling things all over. Bucky's stomach turned and twisted as the cop got closer and closer to the car, even dragging his little grimy fingers on the dirt.

"Rosa" Bucky whispers loudly, causing Rosa to immediately snap her head up. Considering the brown haired man wasn't much of a talker, or never really said her name, she thought something must be wrong.

She quickly glanced at her surrounds and rushed to Bucky "What happened?"

"There" He pointed to the car being stalked by the cop. Rosa's eyes widened in fear, as her hands and body began to tremble.

"Oh shit..." She whispered in utter shock. She frantically glanced at Bucky, then at the cop back and forth, in search of an answer, but neither of them could answer it.

Bucky thought of one thing: run. It was the logical thing to do, the right thing to do. The more they stayed the more Bucky knew their vulnerability increased. If they were caught, they might escape, but it would simply draw more attention to the two vigilantes. But then something popped in his mind that made him ditch his feeling of escape entirely

"We need to go," Rosa whipped her head towards him "And now"

Bucky, to the surprise of Rosa, gently shook his head "My stuff's in there"

"We can replace it"

He shook his head once more "I can't"

She raised her brow in suspicion "Then what is it?"

Bucky paused, and shot his head towards the ground. He could easily be vague about his so called 'stuff' but a feeling of doubt tugged at his heart, telling him not to reveal his secret stuff. But he didn't have much of an option, either have a chance of getting it back, or try to replace it. And he knew it couldn't be easily replaced.

"My journals"

Rosa looked at him as though he gone insane "Journals...JOURNALS. We can replace paper faster than we can a car, or you know, OUR lives. We-"

She stopped, and her crazed, suspicious face softened as she looked into Bucky's eyes. Although it was small, and went by like the wind, she saw emotion in his eyes. She saw sadness spark in his steel blue eyes. It was the first time she saw something else than the blank slate she first picked up.

Rosa put on a tight, guilty smile "Oh…They must mean a lot to you"

"Yeah" He softly replied.

Rosa sighed, and glanced outside again, to the cop who was practically dragging himself all over the dirt coated car. Her eyes went blank as he tried to think of a plan of some sorts.

"Ok then" she glanced back to Bucky "I might have a plan. Just stay behind me and I'll do the talking"

"If it doesn't work, we have to get outta here" Bucky said in doubt.

She slight smirked "I think we should be fine" She turned her head down, with doubt covering her face "Hopefully..." She whispered.

The brown haired man scanned carefully outside, and followed closely behind. Rosa tried to think back to the days where she almost talked out of every situation she dug herself in. It happened so frequently back then, that it almost became an art to her. But with skills such as that, practice was perfect, and she hasn't exactly practiced recently, to say the least.

Rosa, with utterly fake and thin confidence, strutted to the car "Can I help you sir?" She asked, as she put her hand on her hip.

"Is this your vehicle m'am?" The officer said in a grit filled voice.

Rosa nodded "Yes sir. Is there a problem?"

He glanced at the car, then back at Rosa, but with a hint of suspicion in his eyes "I see your license plate registration is expired"

The small, fake smirk on her face swiftly disappeared "Well, I haven't received the letter for that yet"

He raised his brow "It's been nearly half a year, m'am"

She dramatically shrugged "I've been calling the DMV, but they never seem to listen"

The officer paused, and glanced down at the car, causing Rosa to sweat in nervousness. By the time he looked back to Rosa, her eyes were filled with doubt and a tinge of fear. In total surprise to Rosa however, the officer looked over her shoulder, and laid eyes on the Winter Soldier.

"You've been awfully quiet there sir," The officer began "Do you have anything to say?"

Bucky paused, and swallowed the big lump that formed in his throat "No. We've been traveling a lot. And we're tired"

"From where?" The officer asked blankly.

"...Brooklyn" Bucky said in a weak voice

Like a switch, the officer's eyes lit up with pure joy "Really? I grew up in Brooklyn"

"Me too" He said, with a tight, awkward smile on his face, nodding lightly. The officer's joy shielded him from any other emotion so much, that he could even read the anxiety on Bucky's face, or even the utter confusion on Rosa's.

"You gotta be kidding me" The officer shook his head in joyful shock "Who would have thought?"

He took another glance at the car, but with softer, lighter eyes. When he looked back to Rosa, that smile stayed on his face. Her mind cleared of anxiety as soon as she saw that happy, blissful smile on his face.

"Do you live around here now?" The officer asked.

"Yes sir" Rosa said, with a new air of confidence in her voice.

"Just go straight home then, and we'll be all good here" He nodded. Rosa could hardly keep in the relief and joy inside her, knowing that for once, she escaped without a scratch.

The officer walked back to his car, and opened the door. Right as he stepped in, he paused and turned back to the two vigilantes "You have a good day, you too there son"

Rosa and Bucky stood in place, carefully watching until the cop car roared to,life and pulled out of the station. Right as the cop car disappeared behind a wall of cars and trees, Rosa breathed a huge sigh of relief. She quickly rested her head on the car, but immediately lifted it as she thought of her little so called time constraints.

"Oh thank god!" She smiled, and turned to Bucky "You really saved us back there. Thanks"

Bucky nodded swiftly, and turned back to the car.

"Are you actually from Brooklyn or was that just quick thinking?"

Bucky stayed quiet, as his eyes were set on the car. Moment later, his eyes drew to the ground "Yeah. I am"

"Must be nice in Brooklyn, even though I've never actually been there"

Bucky paused yet again, in thought. He didn't remember much of Brooklyn, even with a few he saw in the Captain America museum. He had a vague idea of his life back then, before the war, but the one thing he remembered was Steve. Not Cap Steve, but the Steve that always got his can kicked in an alley.

"It was"

* * *

As the day turned to a dark, thick night, Bucky drove within the darkness. He was used to getting a minimal hour of sleep, he was trained to work for days without a wink. Sure, he slept a little since the trip, but he could operate a car without shut eye.

Rosa, not so much.

She laid in the back of the car, her back along the seats of the small car. With her legs tucked along the seats, and supporting her head with her arm, she felt as comfortable as she was going to get in the tiny car. Her lightly, blood shot eyes and heavy lids blankly focused on the small flash drive she twisted around along her fingers. The grey plastic softly shined against the lights outside of the car, revealing tiny scratches and cuts from usual wear and tear.

Exodus

She couldn't give this up easily, especially since she burned up that phone and any other of her best friends electronic belongings way back. It was the only thing she had left of Cliff, even though she never saw it even once with him. She didn't even know what Exodus was, or why the hell he even said it. But she felt like the only way she was going to get answers was to actually use it.

Rosa deeply sighed, and stuffed the small drive into her pocket. She struggled to flip herself around to face the seats of the couch, but eventually settled in. Tightly closing her eyes, she begged for sleep. At least in there, she could get away from her current problems.

Bucky thoroughly scanned the road in front, carefully driving in the stark darkness that was the night. A few, flickering lights dimly lit up the beaten up freeway, but not nearly enough for comfort. Not that Bucky knew how to work with comfort.

His blank, steel bye eyes followed each of the green sign that passed by his view, in search of the stop Rosa told him about. She said whenever he saw the right street, just wake her up and give him the next directions. It was a simple plan that worked out well, at least so far.

"Нет, не"

Bucky squinted in confusion. He swore it was just his mind playing tricks on him. In doubt, he glanced to Rosa through the rear view mirror, who was awkwardly curled up in the back, with her hands brushing against her chin. Her soft, light breathing signaled the Winter Soldier that she was in deep sleep, out like a light. Bucky thought maybe she snored or something her.

After scanning her to his satisfaction, his eyes turned to the road.

"Вы не можете это сделать"

 _You can't do it_

He snapped his head back to the sleeping girl. It couldn't be his imagination. He heard those words loud and clear. When he scanned back to Rosa however, she was as dead in sleep as she could be. Something set him off though, with the way her brow was set low, and almost squinted. Like the first time he saw her.

"Я не люблю боль"

 _I don't like the pain_

Bucky saw the words roll out of her, like a deep breath. Her eye lid twitched about, like a angry beam of sunshine pierced through her eyes. He squinted in confusion at the familiar words, but his suspicion began to grow. It just so happened she knew Russian, like Bucky did. And it wasn't exactly a language he heard in D.C, or generally anywhere. Either Rosa had a secret Russian ancestor or...

"будет боль, наконец, остановить?"

 _Will it finally stop?_

Bucky paused, and carefully listened to her words. The pain...it could have meant a number of things to the Winter Soldier, but something in the way Rosa said those words in a weak, small voice made him think otherwise. It made him think of the kind of pain that couldn't stopped with a simple aspirin. It was the kind that had hidden scars that wouldn't stop bleeding.

"боль никогда не останавливается..."

 _The pain never stops..._

Bucky knew well enough when the pain started too, it would last for eternity.

* * *

 **Thank you Guest and Lucifer's711 for your reviews!**

 **Wow...I can't believe how fast this fic is growing...This is definitely my top fic my right now in terms of followers and people who have favorites, and readers. So thank you, all of you!**

 **White Winter Hymnal is by a band called Fleet Foxes(One of my favorite bands!). Listen to the song when you have the chance, it's short, but it's pretty good. Also, it's gonna be in your head for a while cause it's catchy as HELL. I didn't just include it because I liked it(One of the reasons though...) but it has a message that's important to the fic.** **I think I'm officially going to go on a irregular updating schedule, because of school, sorry!**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	9. Wish You Were Here(Cause Two Lost Souls)

Steve sighed for what seemed like the hundredth time, as his tired, drooping eyes sunk into the bright computer screen in front of him. Time was irrelevant to his mind, as though he simply disregard the concept of time as a whole. It was hours since Steve planted himself in front of the screen, but to the star-spangled man himself, only minutes have passed. It seemed like he wasn't getting anything done.

He felt as though he was staring at the same picture of the same man who was supposed to be Bucky over and over again. The man he saw last on the helicarrier in Washington D.C was there Winter Soldier, but as this point, he didn't know who he was looking at. He just called him Bucky because that who he was to him.

He found a few pictures of him scattered aground on the Internet, mainly just security footage stills. Steve didn't know how he could be so oblivious to the fact that Bucky was living right under his nose. The same city, the same area. He could even swear on one photo still, that he was only feet away from Bucky.

One photo stuck out though. Steve remembered that day. It was the Washington memorial, early morning, he time where he likes to get in his morning run. The photo depicted Steve passing Sam for probably the third time, in front of the glistening water of the memorial. Out in the background, sitting out at the farthest corner of the steps of the Lincoln memorial, sat a man in a thick black hoodie and thick gloves.

It was Bucky alright. No one simply had a bright, silver glare escape the crack of their gloves on their right hand. Steve remembered it was hot that day, a thick humidity that stuck through the air. No one wears a jacket, unless they have something to hide. Steve remembered this day, because it was the day before he was called to Sokovia.

He sighed, and clicked the photo out of view. As nice as it would have been to study Bucky like Bucky studied him for probably the past year, he needed real progress. He knew he would find what he would need with the main suspect, the girl who breathed fire from her hands.

He didn't know what to make of her. On one hand, she was a fugitive who needed a good slap of reality and go to jail. On the other, she seemed like a person who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The question wasn't when she would strike again, but if she even would at all.

And Sharon was right; virtually nothing about Alvarez, his main target, was on the net. He knew how to use a computer, he wasn't as dumb as a brick, but not to the extent of a Stark. As long as he could type something and information came back, he didn't need anything else.

Alvarez, other than what was plastered about her and Bucky on every news page imaginable, not much else showed up. A few scattered photos of her dressed in mainly waitress uniforms and photos of different apartments popped up, but not anything entirely useful. If she was smart, Steve knew she wouldn't go back to one of her old houses for anything.

Steve lazily swiped his mouse across the screen, bringing up yet another image of the firebender herself. Instead of another waitress uniform, she dressed in simple, loose clothes, as though she was ready to hit the sack and go to bed. Her face seemed younger than the pictures posted of her on the news, yet more wrinkles lined her round face. She was spread out on an old, ratty couch that looked fresh from a nearby dumpster at the time.

Her eyes narrowed and glared back through the picture and right through Steve, pointing her little accusing finger at him. Steve knew she was simply giving a death glare to the photographer, her friend probably, but something about her annoyed, angry eyes seemed to burn holes right through any weak man's soul.

Her narrowed eyes flickered a dull, light orange, as though it reflected a burning fire within the distance. The blond man swore it was only the glare of the camera that made her eyes light up. But her eye should have been a bright, glaring red from the camera. Not a flickering orange.

This still, even with this new piece of information, didn't get him anywhere. It's got him exactly jack-shit. With no idea of a general location nor any us useful information about the girl who spit fire from his hands, he gave a deep, tiring sigh, and leaned back into his chair. He rubbed his palm across his forehead, and slid across his damp skin.

With no leads within hours and virtually no information, he didn't know what to do, so he did what he did best in times of trouble.

He punched his way out of it.

Thick sweat poured from his red, flushed face, that showed absolutely no emotion. A blank slate is what his face was, deprived of worry and anxiety. All of those feeling were shoved inside his mind, and it was already bursting at the seams. His tight fists slammed into the bag over and over again, as though he was a machine built to kill. Maybe in some way, he was.

The sound of clanking foot steps were buried deep within the smacking of the punching bag. Steve completely ignored it, thinking it was simply the metal hook attached to the ceiling was finally failing him, and ready to snap at any moment. This didn't make his jabs any less lethal.

"Punching your way out of this Steve?"

As he was about to slam his fist into the bag again, he clamped on to it, and stopped its violent swinging. Panting with sweat pouring from his face, Steve turned to see none other than the red headed assassin. Natasha, with a concerned yet blank look that was written on her face, had her arms crossed casually.

Steve opened his mouth to say something, but words failed to come out. He simply gave a tired sigh, and began to unroll the white, tattered bandages from his battered fists.

"Where's Sam?" He asked, avoiding eye contact.

"Wilson is out training with the others, like you should be" She replied in level, calm tone, not commanding yet not soft.

Steve tossed the bandages to the floor, and gently unhooked the tattered punching bag. He tossed it over his shoulder, and began to walk away.

"What do you want?" Steve said in a slightly bitter tone.

"I think you know the answer to that" Natasha replied, as she began to casually stroll around the large gym. She briefly glanced down to the tattered white bandages, with small spots of dark blood soaked within the fabric. She could already tell Steve locked himself in here for hours.

The blond man paused, and sighed in defeat. He threw the beaten punching bag on the ground, causing it to briefly bounce and leak thin, bright sand. Steve in frustration glanced down, knowing that he would have to repair it for the 3rd time this week.

"I'm fine" Steve replied, as he turned to Natasha. He tried his best to make his eyes as blank as a white bored, but Natasha didn't need them to read him. His actions already said far enough.

"I think you might be the easiest SHEILD agent to read. You're lying again" Nat gave a ghost of a smile that hid at the corner of her lip, but like the spy herself, quickly disappeared.

"Well, SHIELD isn't here anymore, isn't it?" The blond man hid his true feelings behind a small side smirk, and a playful shake of the head, as though that was enough to draw off her attention.

"No," Natasha muttered, as she carefully stood next to the blond man "But I don't need SHEILD to know that something is wrong"

Steve's fake grin swiftly disappeared like the wind. He blankly glanced down to the floor, and gave a deep sigh. There was no use denying it, even he could tell he wasn't hiding it well. It was strange for him, to reveal so much pain and frustration through simple body language. He was usually good at keeping everything under control, taming his emotions, but today it seemed as though everything was simply too much.

He collapsed on the long, wooden bench, and cupped his hands. His glossy, clear eyes blankly stared at his beaten, bloody knuckles, as though he was trying to find an answer to everything.

"Why did you come?" Steve muttered softly. Natasha gave a deep sigh, and carefully sat on the bench feet away from the sad blond man.

"I know how much Barnes means to you. I read the SSR files" she replied in a calm tone.

"The files don't tell everything," he gently shook his head "They only tell what the SSR wanted"

"It was enough"

Steve paused, as a glimmer of hopelessness crossed his eyes "I feel so close to finding Bucky. I can almost feel it. Sharon and the CIA are the best lead I've had in awhile"

He sighed "I had a short talk with Tony, since the incident with Ultron. I let him in on Bucky, and he might be able to lend me a hand"

"They put his mug shot around the news. Everyone is probably tracking him by now, and that girl" Natasha added in "Not just you, or the CIA"

"That's why we gotta to move fast" Steve sighed "I can't afford to lose him again"

"Your mission is to track the girl, and I don't think you're doing it" Natasha said, crossing her arms. She knew him, and what he did and was going to do. He knew he would focus all on his childhood friend. Alvarez was just a step to him, a sort of prize at the end to settle his guilt.

"I am" Steve said with hint of a steel tongue "It's not easy to track a ghost and a girl who doesn't want to be found"

Natasha drew her blue eyes from Steve and stood up from the bench, causing Steve to whip his head around to her in slight surprise.

"Remember what I said to you when I gave you the file in the graveyard" Natasha warned "You really want to pull on that thread?"

Steve lifted his eyes towards her, with a slight look of determination that covered his face "Bucky is my friend, and even what HYDRA did to him, he still is. I know if he was put in the same place I was, he would do the same for me"

"I'm sure he would," Natasha nodded, and began to walk away "I don't want you to be disappointed"

"Disappointed?"

"Disappointed. Because you might not like the Barnes you find in the end, and I'm not sure he can be the Barnes you knew. I'm not trying to say you will be disappointed, but..." She paused, carefully choosing her words "You might not be able to go back"

With that final warning, she left the room, leaving Steve to take in his lonely bitterness. In his mind, he told himself he could easily accept Bucky in any way and in any shape he came back in, as long as he was by his side again. Within his heart however, glimmers of doubt struck inside it. Telling something and doing something were two separate things that didn't always agree with one another. One was right, but one was wrong, but it doesn't mean he would always do the right one.

He thought Bucky as a man whose mind could be pieced together again, like a broken puzzle. Sure, a few pieces would be missing here and there, but he would be nearly the man who he grew up with. It wasn't a question of he would get his mind back, but it was when. He just had to wait to see what pieces were missing.

But something sat, far in the depths of his mind, something that he feared and dreaded. What if too many pieces of the puzzle to Bucky's mind were missing? Would he just be an empty shell of the man he knew? Could that man ever be close to him again?

Could he accept that Bucky?

* * *

 **Thank you Guest for your review!**

 **Sorry about how late this chapter is! School is staring to, well, kill me...and my free time. I'll post when ever I complete a new chapter so, look out for updates. Anyways, hope you enjoyed!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	10. Carry on Wayward Son(No peace when done)

**Thank you Guest, Rose, and Agentsofshield27 for your reviews!**

 **Yeah...I'm really sorry for the really late post. When I was writing this chapter, I hit writers block REALLY hard. And with the mixture of endless papers and tests(or it seems like it...) it kinda sucked out my inspiration to write. Yesterday though, I watched Doctor Strange(If you haven't watched it WATCH it. It's really good) and that got me out of my writers block and back to writing! So, enjoy.**

* * *

 _Gary, Indiana_

Rosa lightly trailed her finger over the speck of the city on the map, staring at it as if she was going to burn a hole through it with her intense stare. She never tried to, but she bet herself she could. Hell, she could simply do it with the amount of stress that sat diligently in her mind.

 _When's he gonna get outta there?_ She thought impatiently, as her fingers began to tap on the car. She hesitantly lifted her thick cap from her forehead, and glanced over to the men's bathroom for what seemed like the 10th time. The park the firebender decided to stop at was thankfully relatively empty, with only an old couple who carried each other at a park bench across the park. Either Bucky liked to be alone, or those day old breakfast burritos really did a number on his stomach.

Of course, neither was the case.

Bucky slightly clenched his teeth as his metal fingers pressed into the stinging wound on his shoulder. He thought the pain would subside, like it always had, but the old, annoying throb became an increasingly painful sting. His deep, colorful bruise that sat around the wound began to crawl around his shoulder, turning his healthy pink skin into a deep, purple-ish green color.

The bright, fleshy pink that surrounded the wet metal shards now was a swelling mass of red. It swelled up to a small half circle, so large that it practically covered up metal shards that dug into his shoulder.

As his metal hand dug further into the wound, a mixture of dark red blood and a dark yellow liquid seeped out. The unsightly mixture ran down his bruised back, like a small river. He immediately grabbed a clean paper towel and wiped it off in one, clean stroke. The Winter Soldier rubbed the bloody wet towel around his fingers, like it would do something for his wound. He wasn't a doctor or anything, but he didn't need one to tell him the bullet wound was getting worse.

He expected it to be healed by now, like all his wounds were. He didn't take into account that HYDRA always took care of him, like a fine piece of machinery that got damaged. Then again, he was only a machine to them.

With a quiet, frustrated groan, he pulled his shirt back on and began to stuff paper towels near the wound, like a squirrel saving nuts for the winter. By the time he stuck the last paper towel under his shirt, it looked as though his shoulder magically grew bigger, like a bodybuilder on steroids. In a sense though, he kind of was.

He couldn't afford to tell Rosa about the injury, not now. Who knows how that little firecracker will react to an injury. Either she would slap the shit out of him for being stupid not to tell her, or just kick him to the road like unwanted luggage, for being stupid not to tell her. He didn't want to visit any of those scenarios. So, he decided to keep things under the rug until he deemed it safe.

As the seconds rolled by, the light tapping became hard knocks against the car hood. She tried to study the map once more to draw her mind away from him, but it was like Bucky decided to annoy her for once in her life. Not that he already hasn't, though.

His unusual quietness started to drive her a little mad. It was like he was on a schedule when to talk, with a ridiculous amount of breaks. It wouldn't kill him to strike up a conversation, even if it was just meaningless small talk.

With the sound of a door slamming, Rosa snapped her head to the bathroom to see Bucky. His hands were stuffed deeply within his pockets, as his eyes were as blank as ever. To his luck, Rosa didn't seem to notice his new "deformity" that popped from his shoulder.

"It took you long enough" Rosa frowned, as she learned against the beaten sedan "I think you forgot to wash your hands"

To her expectation, Bucky remained still and silent. With a loud sigh, Rosa turned back to the map. She sliced her palm through the cool air, signaling the Winter Soldier to come. When Bucky arrived to the wrinkled map at the hood of the car, the brown haired firebender began to trace a sharp path with a cheap, blue pen.

"Ok then..." She mumbled, as the pen cap sat in between in teeth. With a quick stroke, she pulled the pen cap from her mouth and stuck the pen back inside. She lazily tossed the pen, back on the hood, causing it to roll off the car.

"From what I'm seeing now, I'm thinking a little over a day. A few quick stops for gas and food should keep us on track" Rosa lifted her light brown eyes from the map, and drew them to Bucky's icy cold blue ones. The utterly emotionless stare sent a chill down Rosa's spine, causing her to immediately focus back on the map.

"Sì, si no te boto en el lado de el camino primero..." Rosa flawlessly muttered under her breath, as her hands were planted on each side of the map. Bucky would have been utterly confused if he didn't have a clue of what she said, but he was a Winter Soldier. He knew more languages that he could count on his fingers. Spanish included.

 _(Yeah, If I don't dump you on the side of the road first...)_ Bucky quickly translated.

"Do you wanna get rid of me?" Bucky suddenly asked, snapping Rosa out of her train of thought.

"Huh?" She innocently drew her eyes up.

"What you said. I understood you" Bucky explained in a gravely voice. Rosa paused, thinking back to her mindless comment that slipped from her mouth. At realization of her dumb comment, she blinked in surprise.

"Well...this is awkward..." She anxiously said. She immediately crumpled the map back up and picked up the pen from the ground.

She sighed "Don't take it personally or anything to that matter. It's the lack of sleep and coffee talking"

"How will I know it won't happen?" The shaggy haired man asked in utter doubt. Now that it actually hit Rosa, how won't it she get frustrated enough to say 'Fuck it' and send Bucky packing? Sure, he was a good body guard so far, but she finally figured out something she never thought before. She has to live with him.

She placed the items on the car and turned to Bucky "I'm not gonna go into the cheesy chiche 'I need you and you need me' thing. I can't afford to have someone on running around knowing I exist, other than the government of course, and you can't have someone blabbing off about you either. That's why"

Bucky paused in thought, and finally nodded. It made sense to him, not that he could actually talk to anyone without getting recognized. Then again, the fire girl still doesn't have a clue in the world on who the heck he is. And he intended to keep it that way.

Rosa shrugged, and lazily pointed for Bucky to strap himself into the car. The weird homeless dude was sure something to her. At the very least, he was another warm body to sit next to. It made her feel, even if she didn't admit it to herself, less lonely.

Even if that damn guy refused to open his pie hole.

* * *

Is this guy serious? Rosa thought, as she hesitantly glanced over to Bucky. He dimly sat in the speeding car, and blankly glanced outside the urban terrain.

Without a seatbelt.

She happened to notice as time went on, the Winter Soldier simply stopped buckling his seatbelt. She wasn't one to question anyone's safety or anything, but she would have liked to not draw any more attention than she already had. There was a high chance she was going to get pulled over with her dead headlight alone. Add in a unbuckled seat belt, it spelled out a one way trip to a tiny jail cell.

Bucky didn't see anything in terms of a seatbelt, just uncomfortable restrain that pinned him down to his seat. He never used one during the war, and he wasn't planning to do any again anytime soon. He already did it once, and he didn't want to experience it again. It made him feel...disabled, like he couldn't move. Like he was strapped onto his seat, waiting for another procedure on his metal arm.

The Winter Soldier began to notice Rosa's quick glances, that grew in number with each second. Soon enough, it became a straight on intense stare.

"Do you need something?" Bucky asked, coming out more like an annoyed grunt than anything else.

Rosa immediately darted her eyes back at the road, surprised at his sudden need to talk. Anxious, she began to dig her ragged fingernails into the catering wheel. As much as she wanted to respond, the words failed to roll smoothly out of her mouth.

"Yeah, would it kill you to use a seatbelt?" The words spit out of her mouth. She didn't mean to be that harsh, but nothing else came to mind that could get her point across.

He softly shook his head "I don't like it. The feeling"

She scoffed "I hate to break it to you Bucky, but it's the law"

With no response, Bucky only laid still, as though Rosa's word sent through one ear and out the other. Her hand began to clutch the wheel in frustration. Not only did he blow her off, he didn't respond at all. A snarly little remark would have made her feel a little better, but nothing at all? It was enough to snap her patience.

"God dammit it Bucky!" she growled, snapping her head to the brown haired man in question "Stop acting like a freaking kid and put on your-"

"Rosa" The wind rushed out if Bucky's lungs, as his finger pointed to the dash window. Rosa rolled her eyes and quickly glanced back. She gasped.

"Shit!" She yelled, as the car came hurdling to a thick, concrete road divider. As Bucky attempted to slam his fist through the glass to escape, Rosa thought in a snap. She slammed the car into reverse, and stomped onto the break with all her might. She gritted her teeth as the car screeched through her ears, as though it was skidding across ice. She knew she fucked up. And hard.

It was too late. As much as the car screeched to a slow, it was fast enough to slam into the concrete. The paper thin car violently crashed into the road divider, crumpling the front like it was tissue paper. Before Bucky could react, he launched from his seat and shattered the glass window. He knew though the air, until the ground delivered a kicking blow to his head. Knocked out, he skidded across the unkempt road until his clothes he became nothing more than dirt rags.

To Rosa's luck, the air bags suddenly shot out, causing her dazed head to slam into the head rest. Pieces of broken glass embedded to her bloody face, the force causing her vision to go completely blurry. The sound of cars rushing past her became nothing more than a dull buzz within her ears. She tiredly blinked, trying to regain her vision, but the fuzziness ceased to go away.

A weird, dark red object sat on the fuzzy grey object, grabbing her attention. She narrowed her blurry eyes, trying to sharpen her vision of the object.

"I need...Necesito..." Rosa quietly mumbled, trying to gain control of her own body. Blood began to pour down her face, from injury. She already knew her body was beginning to heal it. Her body began to glow a subtle, bright orange, that leaked out from her skin. The orange patches were scattered around in deformed shapes, like large rashes that healed her body.

Still completely dazed, her hands began to crawl around the broken, totaled car, until she felt a small button. With a click, her tired body fell against the crumpled door. Her hands frantically trailed around the door, as though it had a mind of its own. When she found the handle, she pulled on it, causing her to practically fall from her seat. She latched onto the car, and began to stumble to the increasingly sharper red blur.

"Oh shi'..." Rosa mustered up, still in dazed shock. Her brain couldn't comprehend the damage, the accident. It couldn't feel the pain. It was only seconds.

Her body crashed into the concrete beam, panting as though she was in need of water. Her cut, bloodied hands clamped onto the divider, trying to regain what stability she had. When her vision finally focused again, she finally saw Bucky, laid out on the floor with his head twisted across the ground.

She gave out a loud, groaning sigh, and stumbled over to the knocked out Winter Soldier. She clamped onto his fleshly arm, and began to tug it.

"Com' on Bucky. Grt' up..." She panted, as though she was magically going to pop him back on his feet. She clenched her teeth as his weight was no match for her strength. Even with her foggy mind, she knew she could lift up any old person. Not a guy with the built of a body builder.

With the sound of footsteps, Rosa grained and slammed Bucky's hurt hand back on to the concrete. Her narrowed eyes turned to see a older, grey haired man rush to her side. His eyes were as big as plates as he frantically rushed to her side, oblivious to her identity.

"I saw everything from my car. Are you alright?" The man asked, with a phone in his hand. Rosa snapped back to reality, with the sight of that phone. One call, and she knew she was done for.

"I'm good" she frantically nodded "And he is too"

"My wife is on the phone with the dispatchers. They should-" the man suddenly froze, and took a second glance and the cut up firebender. Even with the amount of dark blood that covered her face, that face was unmistakable to him. He heard the warning all over the news. About her.

With shaky hands, the man slowly backed away, as though he was facing a feral animal. She knew that look. She hated that look.

Rosa lazily stuck out her cut hands in attempt for defense "No...please...h-he's hurt. He's hurt"

"Your h-her" The man ruse widened as his accusing finger vibrated through the air "You're all over the news"

"N-no. Please...help him. Please, he's hurt" Rosa pleaded, as her shaky hands danced in the air. She didn't bother to deny her identity. She didn't have time.

"Y-you don't deserve help. You don't belong here"

"Please! He's dying!" She screamed, falling to her knees. Tears began to streak her bloodied face. She didn't even know why she was trying to save Bucky as this point. She only knew a man was in need to care, and was dying. Like Cliff.

"Your d-dangerous"

"No...please...don't call the police. It was an accident..." Rosa stumbled back to her feet, and reached out her hand for the phone. Her eyes were widened and fearful, as though his phone was a deadly weapon. In her eyes, it was. The man clenched onto it, caressing it within his hands, like it was a baby.

"I'll go away. I won't bother anyone anymore. Just give me the phone..." Rosa insisted, as frustration began to creep within her voice. The man immediately shook his head, and began dialing on his phone.

Rosa narrowed her tired eyes, and jabbed out her hand. She snatched the phone from his hand, causing him to gasp in surprise.

 _This is 911, what's your-_

Before the message could finish, she crushed the electronic phone within her tight fist. When her shaky hand unclenched, his nice, new phone was nothing more than twisted metal. With a seething glare, Rosa chucked the phone parts aside to the ground, and turned around. The man could only stare in shock, as she stumbled back to the laid out man.

"Ok Bucky..." She mumbled "Let's go..." She winced as he clamped her hands again onto his arm, and dragged his lifeless body across the pavement. Oblivious to the gaining crowd of people that surrounded her, she stumbled to the nearest unattended car, a large suv. With one swift swipe, she ripped open the trunk, leaving it to hang over her head. Like a rag doll, she tossed Bucky into the back, and slammed the trunk shut again.

"Get your hands off my car you bitch!" An angry woman suddenly yelled from the crowd. Rosa gave a tired groan as she turned to see a heavily tanned woman with a large snarl on her face. Before Rosa could react, her painted pink nailed fist slammed into her face. Her tired body stumbled into the car, causing her bean to slam against the hard metal.

The frustrated firebender turned her head, and spit a ball of blood from her mouth, landing right onto the stainless car. She panted, and held onto the car for stability.

The angry woman's eyes flared up in rage, angry that this criminal literally spit on her car. She clenched her hands into another fist, and ran up to Rosa, for another blow. Rosa, regaining her thoughts, realized the woman was coming for another hit. She put snarl on her face, and violently delivered her fist into the woman's face. The only noise that escaped the angry tanned woman was a terrified gasp, knowing she messed up. And hard. With a sure knocking blow, a sickening crack escaped her face. The woman collapsed to the ground, as blood began to run from her now broken nose.

She was sure she heard a few gasps from the ever so 'innocent' people on the road, watching the entire fiasco like a caged fight. With her mind still beaten up and soupy, she failed to react.

Rosa dimly watched the dark, sticky blood run from her nose, until it finally spilled onto the highway into a shiny, red puddle. With the thought of blood, it snapped her back into the cold hard reality. She should be running. And maybe she should check on Bucky.

Her bruised, beaten legs dragged her bag to the trunk of the car. She latched to the trunk door for support, and slammed it open once more. She groaned as she pulled Bucky's arm, and rolled him back onto his back, causing his head to roll to the side of his face. On instinct, she pulled up two fingers to his neck, checking for signs of life. She was relieved and satisfied at the steady beating pulse. A little faster for her comfort, but still alive nonetheless.

Rosa's drooping eyes began to inspect the multiple cuts that ran around his face trailing around his thickly matted long hair. She sighed, knowing she was going to have to set aside money for a crap load of bandaids. Or actual bandages. Either way, all she could see in his injuries were dollar signs.

With another sigh, she slowly stumbled to the driver's seat, and to her luck, the now knocked out tanned woman left her key ever so hidden into the enginition of the car. Rosa probably would have made some little smart remark about it, but with the police probably on her, and Bucky acting like a giant paper weight, she could have cared less.

So, with the quick twist of the enginition, she shoved the car into drive, and drove away, like it was a normal, carefree day on the run.

* * *

 **Just a quick side note here, I'll try to post as soon as I can, but it'll be an irregular updating schedule. I was just lucky I got this chapter out before I got another paper!(yay...).**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	11. Eclipse (All That is Gone)

_Now here I go again, I see the crystal visions_

 _I keep my visions to myself, it's only me_

 _Who wants to wrap around your dreams and,_

 _Have you any dreams you'd like to sell?_

 _Dreams of…_

The song numbly rang through Rosa's ears, and echoed throughout the small, seedy bathroom. She liked Fleetwood Mac, especially Stevie Nicks raw and soothing voice. It carried her away from the moment, like her brain was sailing on a ship to paradise. Today, however, the tactic didn't seem to work as well.

She was incredibly dumbfounded, and lucky, she even escaped that horrid scene. She was positive she would be pulled over in a heartbeat, but it seem like the police weren't informed of her little getaway. She probably broke that tanned woman's nose too. Unfortunately, she had to ditch the car because it decided that it needed more gas, and basically drag the homeless guy on the side of the dark freeway. Grunts, shouts, and curses later, she found the beaten up motel. It was the classic, seedy motel in need of a paint job, clean sheets and a real personality. It was safe to say it wasn't going to be fully booked up anytime soon, but it was the only thing she could afford now.

With Bucky still collapsed on the rickety bed, Rosa blasted the borrowed CD of music from an old CD player that barely balanced itself on the bathroom sink. She was surprised it worked, considering nothing else on the motel did. She couldn't even get the freaking lamp to turn on.

She stared blankly at herself through the greasy, foggy mirror, examining her own injuries. The bright orange glow on her face ceased, which was a good sign for her, meaning her body stopped healing itself. She grabbed a ratty towel, and began to wipe her face clean of dark, sticky blood. The thick blood streaked her face with each wipe, as though she was wiping a mixture of dark paint from her cheeks. With each stroke, she eventually wiped her face clean to her satisfaction, and rung out the once white-ish towel over the cracked sink a stream of thin, faded blood trickled from her fist, and quickly ran down the sink. Trying to cover her tracks, she let the sink run freely, and she simply chuckled the blood stained towel into the trash bin. Knowing from experience, she knew it would be impossible for the employees to wash that towel anyways. If they did, anyways.

Next step...wake the beast... Rosa sarcastically raised her brow in front of the mirror, knowing what she had to do next. Time to wake up Bucky from his beauty nap.

She sighed, and clicked the CD player off, letting the sound of whistling pipes fill her ears instead. She slowly creaked open the door, and peered her head into the dark, musty room. Sure enough, Bucky was still sprawled out onto the sheets. Not really sprawled anymore, but curled up in a loose ball within the middle of the bed. As Rosa slowly inched closer she began to hear his soft snores. Even in sleep, he was stealthy like.

Even if he took a knocking blow from a road divider, he looked as calm as ever. He actually looked like he was sleeping, rather than just shutting his eyes and pretending to hit the sack.

Rosa slowly crept up to his back, and gently shoved his shoulder, hoping to wake him peacefully. Instead of feeling soft, wet flesh, it felt like she was trying to shove a rock.

"What the hell..." Rosa mumbled under her rather, squinting in thought. She shoved him a little harder, and still felt the hard, almost smooth arm. Either the homeless man either blew his money on the gym, or...

Suddenly, Bucky's eyes snapped wide open, revealing his clear, blue eyes. Within a second however, they slightly narrowed, draining the emotion from his face. Along with his thoughts, and humanity. It happened so quickly.

The Winter Soldier snapped himself over to Rosa, and jabbed his hidden metal arm out, aiming for Rosa's neck. Before Rosa could react, the Winter Soldier clenched his deadly hand onto her frail neck, and squeezed it as tight as he could, as though he wanted to feel each bone crack under his fist.

Rosa's light brown eyes widened in a mixture of shock and fear. She felt her lungs immediately gasp for hair, as though they snapped completely shut. She frantically clawed at his glove, begging for a breath of air. She felt her bone creak under his grip, ready to snap in half.

"Bucky! Buc!" Rosa managed to gasp out. She shouted and shouted again, continuing her shrill cries for help, for her freaking life. Her eyes were practically bulging out of her head as she her lungs began to scream for air. Her fearful eyes pleaded Bucky to stop, to let her go. Bucky however only met hr with that same, blank look he used for the enter trip. But now, that look seemed sinister.

Holly shit. She was actually going to die to the homeless man.

"Sto'p! Buc!"

The Winter Soldier knew the girl was just another target on his list, another person to get rid of before he could go home again. Before his boss would pick him up again and ship him back to Siberia. He saw the same, fearful look on this girl that he saw on dozens of people he 'eliminated'. And today wasn't any different. It was just a routine for him, and nothing more. He didn't have anything else to do, anyways.

"Bu!" Rosa gasped once more, feeling her lungs run dangerously low on air. Her angry, clawed hands tried to it into the Winter Soldier's face, but the best she could do at this point was an awkward rub on Bucky's face. Her fingers barely trailed over his forehead, moving more hair out of his face, to see his target.

One more option. Why didn't she think of this first?

Her hands clawed onto the Winter Soldier's arm, digging her fleshy hands into the thin fabric of Bucky's jacket. Her lungs at this point screamed, begging for an ounce of air. Her raw throat began to gasp, begging for a breath. She had one try at this, and only one. It was time to make it count.

Her bulging eyes faced up towards the ceiling, her mouth jerked open as wide as she could. Her wide, light brown eyes melted into a bright orange, running through her bloodshot veins within her eyes. The orange energy slowly crawled through her face, all the way to her clenched, bony hands. Her hands began to glow as bright as flaming fire, as she began to sizzle within his hand.

Although she wasn't able to spark a fire, it was enough heat for the Winter Soldier to detect. The Winter Soldier slightly loosened his grip, and squinted in confusion. He felt the distant signal of heat crawl up his shoulder, but, what does he do? He never faced anything like this during his training sessions, and it wasn't like HYDRA thought their soldiers to be 'creative' when killing a target. That sign usually meant his arm was either burning or melting. That was bad, right?

Burning. Melting. The pipe. His home. The girl. Rosa.

His mind snapped back into reality, snapping out of his conditioning. His eyes flicked emotion, slightly widening in his action. He was choking Rosa.

What the hell was he doing?

In a mixture of shock and daze, he un clamped his hand from her neck causing her to collapse onto the ratty carpet. Bucky didn't even bother to see her crash into the floor, and flop around like a fish swallowing the thick, fresh air. He thought he got rid of the Winter Soldier conditioning once he left HYDRA for good. He felt the programming completely wash his mind away, take his body for a test drive once more. What did he do?

Rosa didn't give one fuck that the air tasted of thick mildew and wet carpet, she could actually breath. She clamped onto her neck she she felt the thick, cool air invade her lungs once more, as though she was trying to widened her trachea with nothing but her hands. Panting, but regaining her thoughts, she slammed her hand onto the edge of the bed, and stumbled back to her feet. Her wide, shocked eyes didn't even blink as she looked at the culprit to her almost-murder, Bucky.

"What. The hell. Was that?" Rosa intensely panted, leaning her hand on the ratty bed for the sake of her stability. Bucky didn't even bother to make eye contact. His clear blue eyes were stuck onto the bed sheets, refusing to acknowledge her question. It wasn't like he could anyways. He didn't know how to, even if he told the frazzled dark brown haired woman about his past. What could he say?

"You almost killed me!" Rosa screamed out with her raw throat. Her bloodshot eyes began to stream down thick, hot tears, that ran down her face. She didn't know which emotion she should have felt, fear? Anger? Sadness? All she could think was about how she almost died. She knew a few seconds later, she would have been out like a light. A few seconds after that, all Bucky would have been holding was a body.

Bucky pursed his lips thin, refusing to say anything. Not even a simple sorry.

"Oh, that's it?" Rosa's voice dripped with bitterness. "Not a damn explanation? You're going to sit their like a damn idiot?"

Bucky still had no idea what to say. He couldn't say sorry. He felt like it wouldn't mean much not only to Rosa, but also to himself.

"Ok, that's it! I'm done with you" Rosa lowered her voice, but her anger ceased to fade. Within seconds, she chucked a bag and bought from the gas station, and began to stuff it with various items. She angrily tossed items in the bag, not bothering to see what she was actually putting in. All she knew as that the fuller it got, the faster she could leave this hell hole, and the faster she could get to her safe house.

She quickly slung the bag over her shoulder, and swiped the keys across the table into her hand, eager to leave Bucky to his own devices. Bucky sat on the edge of the bed, twiddling his thumbs as he looked for words to say. He really didn't have to say anything, but after that situation, she deserved something.

"I'm...sorry" Bucky softly mumbled, barely catching Rosa's ears. Right as her hand hovered over the door knob, she paused.

"Is that it?" Rosa asked, looking from the corner of her eye "If it is, you wasted both of our times"

With silence, Bucky confirmed her comment, causing her to jerk the door open, and violently shut it closed. The brown haired man didn't flinch at the loud, banging noise, from the door slam, and only sat deep within his thoughts. She stomped over to the stolen car, and violently tossed her bag inside to the passenger seat. She quickly jammed the car key into the car and started the ignition.

She cut Bucky off. She could leave.

"God dammit..." Rosa hissed under her breath, as she looked at her bag. Or, what was left of it. The bag was only a gaping hole now, with items scattered across the seat as well as the floor. She should have expected it to split open, considering at best the bag cost her about a buck. With a groan, she started to grab the fallen items an lazily place them on the car seat. As she picked up her last item, she happened to notice it was nothing other than a can. A can of spam

Her eyes subtly glistened across its shiny wrapper, revealing her tired expression. She didn't even know why she felt an urging feeling to go back and give it to Bucky. He didn't deserve anything after he nearly choked the life out of her. But...she felt like she it was the least she could do. He did travel with her, and got her out of a few sticky situations. She knew she should just forget about it, and ride on over to the sun set, but...it was like she had to.

She sighed, and calmly stepped out of the car. With the creaking of the motel door, she quickly peered through, seeing Bucky in the same, sitting position he was when she first stormed off. Rosa blankened her expression and stomped to the table.

"Heres your damn Spam. Be grateful, I even left you that, cause I'm taking your room key" Rosa said blankly, as she slammed the can onto the table.

"I'm sorry" Bucky replied in a soft, yet louder voice, as though that would solve his problems. He tried to raise his guilty blue eyes to Rosa, but he simply couldn't. Even he couldn't feel the sincerity within his frail apology.

"I heard you to first time" Rosa growled unnecessarily. Sorry wasn't just going to cut it. At this point, she thought nothing would. But then again, the metal armed man was always full of surprises,

"What else can I do..." The brown haired man mumbled under his breath. He gave a slight shrug in his defeat. It wasn't like he was grieving because Rosa finally ditched him, in fact, he was counted on it. But...something tugged at his heart. He couldn't quite place it, but it was like...he wanted someone. Sure, being alone got him what he needed, but maybe it was finally time. Time to get something he wanted.

Rosa paused right as her hand clenched the door knob. She couldn't help but notice the distinct...hopelessness trailed within his voice. It made her squint it thought. It was strange for her. She heard...emotion. Actual emotion in his voice. Maybe it was because she never actually carried to listen to his voice before, not like that. It was enough however to make her groan, and snap her head to the curious dark haired man.

"For starters, an explanation would be dandy" Rosa said with sarcasm that practically dripped from her voice.

Bucky slightly squinted his eyes in confusion, and stopped twiddling his thumbs. He read that sarcasm like a book, now that he was actually used to the fire girl's snarky remarks. Was she actually serious or...?

"I don't know" Bucky quickly mumbled. His clear blue eyes quickly drew back to his gloved hands. Of course, he knew exactly why he did it. Or more specifically, why the Winter Soldier did it.

Rosa narrowed her light brown eyes in suspicion. As much as she wanted to believe his words, his explanation meant chicken shit to her. It wasn't hard to tell he was lying, the way he avoided eye contact again, and played ever so delicately with his thumbs read 'liar' to her. No one just happens to choke the life out of anyone for absolutely no reason. Unless it was some strange sex game Bucky was dreaming about...in that case she shouldn't wake him up again.

"You're lying," Rosa replied dryly "Try again"

Bucky paused, and lost himself within his thoughts. He thought he was only moments away from being called out, revealing his true identity. Should he just spill his guts out to her? Or, should he try to avoid it again? He knew of he just stapled his mouth shut that was the end of the killer road trip across the U.S. But...if she just told her...what would happen?

"I had...a bad dream" Bucky practically choked out. He stopped moving his thumbs, and sighed at his confession. It was like he was disappointed in himself from revealing the truth.

Rosa's eyes, as much as she tried to help it, lit up in curiosity. Her hands let go of the grimy door knob, as she bang to face Bucky. A voice inside of her wanted to just scream at the top of her lungs and leave him for dead, but another voice fought for her attention. It wanted to listen to the weird homeless man.

"It must have been one hell of a nightmare then. Care to enlighten me?" Rosa asked. Her mind began to scream for her to leave, but her body simply walked over to the bed, and sat her on the bed across from Bucky.

He paused, formulating a plan for his dream. His 'dreams' were always the same. Another mission. Another victim. Another body. Another time in cryo. The only thing different about the nightmares are the ways he killed people. Guns, hands, knifes, they were all used. He dreams of the guns most frequently.

"I..." Bucky tightly pursed his lips, and sighed "I was being used. For some bad things. And...you woke me when..."

He paused again, refusing to say those evil words. He killed someone. He choked them to death. Like he always did.

Rosa squinted her eyes in curiosity "When what?" She almost whispered

Bucky suddenly lifted his eyes to Rosa's, revealing his built up guilt "I was killing someone"

Although Rosa's face was stone cold(To her best ability). Thoughts began to race through her mind. Alrighty then. He dreamt of killing someone. Any sane person would immediately pick up their bags and get outta here, but Rosa...she felt differently. His guilty eyes finally reached her mind, and camped within her thoughts. Well...he was used...he said. She glanced to her glove hand, knowing the three, evil numbers still etched within her skin.

Maybe because she was used before too. Used like a lab rat, and treated only like an experiment. She knew if her mother and father ever found about about that, they wouldn't ever let her out of the house, even at the age of 25. But they didn't know. They don't even have a clue where she is now. Wouldn't they be disappointed...

Rosa sighed, and like Bucky, drew her eyes to her gloved hands "Do you get these dreams often?"

"Enough" The dark haired man cut off, swiftly dismantling her curiosity of the man. If if Bucky was killing someone and being used...it wasn't probably something Rosa shouldn't push. There's a reason why some things are kept in the dark.

"I've had dreams like that...Being used" She chuckled "Don't we all?"

"What happened?" Bucky asked.

She pursed her lips "Pain. A lot of pain"

 _"Я не люблю боль"_

 _I don't like the pain_

The words stung in Bucky's memory. It hit him like a truck. The words she whispered during her sleep. He didn't know what to make of it now. If he connected the dots...

"By the way, you're bleeding out from the accident still" Rosa pointed out.

Bucky gently rubbed his fingers over his cheek, and felt a cold, liquid touch his finger tips. When he lifted his fingers up to his face, it revealed clotted, thick blood. He knew it would heal fast, like everything else did. But that bullet wound...

"I can patch you up" Rosa offered "I got a few bandages sitting in the car"

He paused, and before he knew it, he nodded in agreement. Rosa quickly walked back to the car, grabbed the white, neatly packaged bandages, and tossed them on the bed.

"Let's see what the damage is today..." She mumbled, as she collapsed on the bed beside Bucky. A ball of anxiety built up within his throat as her eyes first drew to his back. Didn't think she would finally notice that huge stain of blood on his shoulder from that bullet? Well, he was wrong.

Rosa just happened to notice that huge stain of blood on his shoulder, just sitting there, waiting to be healed. It was a little shock to her at the amount of blood dried up, but she had to remember: he did go through a freaking car crash.

The brown haired woman grabbed a small pair of scissors from the table, and began to cut through his thick coat. She kept on slicing through, knowing it didn't matter, he was going to need a new jacket anyways. When she finally cut through, she peaked through. Oh, how she regretted even offering her help.

Her light brown eyes flickered in horror, fear Bucky knew she had. She saw he angry, pulsating wound, that looked as though it was about to burst at the slightest touch. She saw the red, angry skin surround what looked like a metal shard deep within his skin. She saw the freaking pain from an infection. If she could, she would neatly close the he jet and forget the wound ever crossed her mind. Too late.

"We're going to need more than bandages..."

* * *

 **Thank you Agentsofshield27 and Guest for your reviews!**

 **Wow...almost 50 followers. For the 50 follower, I'll give a personal shout out! It's the least I could do. Anyways, not much in terms of news...so have a nice day. Hope you enjoyed!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	12. (Oh God Just) Don't Ask Me Why

**Wow...its been quite a long time since I updated this story...**

 **I'm really sorry that I left you guys hanging for such a long freaking time. Back when I posted, I really thought I would be on a roll and spit out chapters for this fic...then I hit a wall. It got really difficult to continue for some reason, even though I REALLY wanted to write for this fic. I really don't know why to be honest, I guess it was a very big writer's block for me. Anyways, somehow, I broke that wall, and now I'm back!**

 **I can't promise regular updates like I did before (other fics, school, tests, all that fun stuff...) but I'll write when I can. Because of my irregular updates, I added a section on my profile called "Story Status". As the name basically says, I'll update that section whenever I'm in the process of writing a chapter for a fic, if it its to be written, outlining, and etc. I hope it gives you an idea of when a chapter should come for this story in the near future, or if your interested in multiple stories of mine.**

 **Anyways...I didn't forget about that shoutout of mine! I did say the 50th reader who followed this fic would get a shout out. Unfortunately, I can't shout out just one follower because I remember distinctly I gained a few followers before I could see who my 50th was. As a result, I'm posting all who helped my break to 50 followers on the day I posted my last chapter before this one. So, thank you:**

 **-2ndDraft**

 **-MissElaineFox**

 **-** **TheNarnianMugglebornAvenger**

 **Thank for helping me get over 50 followers! It's huge for me!** **And to all of you who have continued to follow and favorite this, I really appreciate your support! I'm glad you still waited for a new chapter.**

 **I think that it for now. Anyways, like always, reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**

* * *

Rosa quickly trailed her fingers over the various 'medical' tools she bought at the 'store', meaning she hit the gas station and bought whatever she could to suture that ugly wound Bucky had plastered on his shoulder. Sure, she had to time her hair back and slap on a cap to hide her identity, but it wasn't likes she was waving a sign around just asking to be caught. She was just lucky the guy who scanned her items happened to be a bit dumber than what he actually looked liked.

As much as she attempted to drown her thoughts in reading the receipt over and over again, but that got pretty dull for her in a snap. The brown haired firebender couldn't help but feel a ball of anxiety twist in her stomach, and a big one at that. She didn't exactly tell Bucky the entire truth about being able to patch him right up, but at the same time, she didn't lie either. Sure, she's watched a few videos online of educational videos on suitering, or sowing flesh, in her spare time, but she's never done it herself. And she didn't even have the right so called medical tools to do so.

She had a sewing needle. A freaking sewing needle. She knew this was going to be fun...

With a deep, disappointed sigh, she stretched out her arms, and cracked her fingers, as though she stepped on little twigs. Her brown eyes immediately drew to her thick, bloodied glove, still soaked in her own blood, and perhaps a bit of that weird, homeless man's blood too. She knew well enough wearing her glove as she attempted a patch-work surgery wasn't going to cut it. Hell, she could barely bend her freaking fingers that were swallowed up in the plush, thick fabric.

That's when her stomach just plummeted to the ground.

"Oh god no..." Rosa mumbled under her breath. Once she tore off that glove, those three little numbers etched onto her hand would be out there for the world to see, well, just Bucky. And that wouldn't be fun explaining one bit. She couldn't exactly take back her offer without looking like a complete dick, and she didn't want to answer any questions that popped out of the dark haired man's mouth (not that she expected him to really ask anyways).

On the other hand...that angry looking wound wasn't going to heal itself. She knew well enough it would fester, swell, and burn until Bucky really needed to go to the hospital. She couldn't count on that doctor being so kind to them, especially when she burned people to a crisp and probably sent that equally crispy woman on the highway to the hospital, and who knows what Bucky has done, considering he was running from the government too.

The brown haired firebender swallowed a thick lump in her throat, filled with doubt and hesitation and let those emotions burn within her stomach. Whether she liked it or not, she had an obligation. She got Bucky into that mess, and she was sure as hell going to get him out.

Sometimes, she wished she didn't eat that damn protein bar back in D.C.

While Rosa basically tried to make the best out of 99 cent trash, the ex-Winter Soldier himself sat carefully at the edge of the nearly broken, plastic wrapped bed. His brilliant blue eyes drew down to his softly bloodied thick gloves, where his thumbs wrapped over each other again, again, and again. Although his thickly matted, blood soaked hair fell into his eyes, Bucky didn't bother to shift it away. It was like a shield that covered the contents of his mind. And how he thought it was nearly packed to the rim with thoughts.

He couldn't say no to the firebender's offer to patch him up. He could live with the pain of his bullet wound for God knows how long, but that wasn't what he was concerned about. He only knew of one way to treat infections such as his arm. The HYDRA way, or rather, amputate the limb and start over again with an entirely new part. Make that two ways. Another way to treat that infection was to simply kill the said person.

Like always, a bit of anxiety crawled into his mind and called it home. Sure, Rosa would probably take care of that wound, but how the hell was he going to hide his arm? It wasn't like he could just pop it off and pretend he never even had an arm there in the first place, and no normal person had an entire arm made out of the finest metals from Mother Russia. And considering the yappy firebender didn't know when to shut her mouth, the questions would pop out. How could he answer them, if he didn't even know how to?

The sound of a squeaking door snapped him out of his disruptive thoughts. His eyes briefly glanced up to the bathroom door, before they snapped back to his gloves, as though they were the most interesting thing in the world. In that short moment however, he saw Rosa's head carefully peak from the door, with her rough, clean fingers carefully on the edge.

"Hey Bucky," The brown haired firebender said as she quietly closed the door behind her. She stepped up to the bed, and proceeded to dump her makeshift 'medical' equipment onto to side table. With a loud, tired sigh, she rolled up her sleeves and collapsed beside the weird homeless man "You ready?"

Bucky slowly turned his head his head towards Rosa, and stared into her deep brown eyes. Seconds later, he replied with a light, swift nod before he tightly pursed his lips "Yeah"

"Alrighty then…" Rosa mumbled under her breath. She slowly trailed her fingers along his ripped, dark red stained shirt, and proceeded to rip it apart, exposing the entire, fleshly wound. Although the brown haired firebender didn't quite notice, Bucky's shoulders, or rather shoulder tensed up once he felt the corner of his ripped shirt creep up his back. One more good, hard rip, all Rosa would see is that giant metal arm of his. And he felt dangerously close to that scenario.

Rosa swollen a giant lump in her throat once her brown eyes laid upon the angry, stupidly infected bullet wound. It was still red, pulsating, and looked as though even she even laid a finger upon it, it would explode, leaving flesh and blood to fly everywhere in the room. She just had to give herself that mental image...

She plucked out a pair of cheap, latex gloves, and slipped them right on. The rubber snapped as she tugged them onto her hands, drilling that sound not only into her own ear, but into Bucky's. It was sound all too familiar to both of them. Although Rosa immediately winced and cringed, the ex-Winter failed to even twitch. Even if it brought up some unsightly memories. Like those countless operations to his shoulder.

Right as the brown haired firebender picked up a fresh tweezers from a manicure kit.

She reluctantly glanced at that godawful sight of a wound that pulsated into Bucky's shoulder. She didn't even know why she was so freaking reluctant and jittery. She's seen some horrible wounds, worse than that thing that looked like it was growing out if the homeless man's shoulder. She's seen burns horrible enough to make her puke. She seen bloody cuts that gave her nightmares. She's seen bodies, so many bodies...so many to make her nearly immune to seeing those stiff people with glassy eyes.

Well, expect Cliff. Right then, she clenched her tweezer.

"How long is this gonna take?"

Rosa blinked out of her thoughts, and focused her eyes back onto her awfully sharp tweezer. By the time she knocked her mind back into reality, she realized she already dug her so called medical tool into his pulsating, bright red shoulder. Her tweezer was tightly around the bloodied butler, causing even more yellow, thick pus and blood to leak out, like two ugly waterfalls.

"Huh?" Rosa mumbled.

Bucky paused for a second, before he settled his hands back into their cupped position "How long is this gonna take?"

"Oh, yeah..." Rosa mumbled incorrectly under her breath "Considering I've never done this in my life...I'm estimating before sunrise"

"You've never done this?" Bucky softly replied, although came more out like a comment than anything else.

Rose briefly nodded as she carefully squeezed her tweezers around the bullet, and proceeded to softly yank it out from its hiding place "Well, I'm not a doctor or anything, and it's not like I'm shot every month. I've never really had enough for collage or whatever, but..." Rosa paused as she carefully pulled a freshly cleaned pocket knife from the bed "The internet is a helpful place, you know? Is not always so damn scary..."

She didn't want to exactly mention that last part. Sure, before she was made into a science experiment by some evil dudes and their egos, she had aspirations, dreams, like any other kid. Those so called dreams were spit on an chucked right out the door once she earned herself a rightful spot in that orphanage. It wasn't as bad as it could have been but...it could have been much better. She could have been someone other than that girl, who chucked fire and whose big fat face was plastered across the freaking USA.

Rosa scrunched her nose as she dug her sharp knife deeper and deeper into Bucky's shoulder. Even with the excruciating pain that should have followed, the ex-Winter Soldier stayed obediently still on the edge of the bed. It was like he didn't feel the knife stabbing repeatedly into his shoulder.

"Hey, are you sure you're fine?" Rosa asked doubtfully, as she began to wiggle the bloodied bullet from his aching shoulder "I know I don't have anything to help with the pain right now, but you're taking this like a champ. It's kinda freaking me out"

"Im fine" Bucky replied in a clean, weak tone.

"I'm literally digging a knife and tweezers into your shoulder..."

"I'm fine" Bucky repeated in a slightly louder, yet equally crisp tone. Rosa opened her mouth again, but not wanting to argue and burst into flames again, she snapped her mouth right shut, and continued her tedious work.

Pain was nearly nothing to the Winter Soldier, even the ex-Winter Soldier himself. It was only a signal to him that either his arm was in need to repair, or that he needed to be treated, that's all. It was like a switch in his head that either went off or on, with nothing in between. It was simply how HYDRA conditioned him. They couldn't have a Winter Soldier that complained every sighed freaking time they earned a massive cut, or broken bone. They simply forced him to brace it, whether he liked it or not. Or rather, if he even knew or not.

"Ok then..." Rosa mumbled doubtfully. Her brown eyes flicked in accomplishment as the bloodied bullet squeezed out of the dark haired man's shoulder, leaving a gaping wound full of dark red flesh and a pungent smell that smells like a rotting corpse. Rosa immediately scrunched up her nose in disgust, causing her to flick the tainted bullet aside, and slap a clean, wet towel on his wound.

"Here, hold that would you?" Rosa asked. Although she didn't earn a nod, or even a simply grunt, Bucky listened to her command and stretched his arm across his chest, all the way to his bleeding shoulder. A pang of sharp, pulsating pain pierced through his body as his metal arm reached for his wound, yet, his blank, unassuming face hardly revealed anything. He did look pretty tired however...

The brown haired firebender reluctantly met Bucky's clean, blue eyes as she slid that swing needle right out of its hiding place. Her once brown, clear eyes lit up a bright, blazing orange, causing her veins to glow like a night light. The glow tracked up her arm, all the way to the tips of her fingers, where smoke began to billow from the silver, thick needle. Rosa shook her hand a couple of times to disperse the smoke, causing the bright orange glow to retract back into her body. With anxious bright orange eyes, they slowly melted back into the brown that Rosa knew and loved. When her fingers delicately trailed up the neck of the needle, it revealed a black char that coated the once silver sharp object like a very thin coat of paint.

The silence. There it went again. And how it absolutely killed her. She didn't even understand why Bucky was so freaking content with silence, or at least looked as though he was. The silence always meant something else to her than calmness and content-ness. It meant something else was coming. It meant someone was trying to muffle out someone's shrill, during cries. It meant she was alone, with no one. She thought she could be perfectly fine and good on her own but...

Why would it matter if she was alive if no one else even gave a single shit?

Then her eyes drew to Bucky. She knew for a fact that homeless man could careless about her and her own problems. He probably had enough on his own plate that he didn't have the capacity to deal with someone else. At the same time, he hasn't attempted to leave like the many times she's thought about dumping him on the side of the road. Hell, she accident it mentioned it once in another language accidentally. Yet, he stayed like his regular, ol' weird self...

Sure, he could careless, but he still does care in Rosa's eyes.

"Thanks" Rosa mumbled as she clutched onto the bloody towel that was quickly soaked up his blood. Bucky's fingers seemed to linger onto the battered towel, before he finally opened his fist, and drew his entire hand away right to his lap.

"So..." The brown haired firebender cleared her throat, as she snapped the cap off of a bottle of bitter smelling rubbing alcohol and dumped it into a clean towel "Are you a boxer or something?"

Bucky blinked in surprise of the sudden question, causing him to slightly turn his head towards the eagerly working Rosa, who was rubbing his shoulder with alcohol as though she was trying to sandpaper his skin off. A few moments later, after careful thought, he answered "No"

"Really?" Rosa raised her thick brow "That's surprising"

"Why is that?" Bucky weakly replied in a clear, yet slightly gruff tone.

She paused as she chucked the towel aside, and careful threaded a piece of fishing wire into the eye of her needle "I don't know...it looks like pain doesn't really faze you much, and you're built like a truck" she chuckled "I felt those fingers of yours around my neck and my god, it felt like a freaking crow bar. And that coming from someone like me"

"I'm sor-" Bucky was about to apologize hair, before Rosa pursed her lips and interrupted him.

"Yeah, I heard you the first time," Rosa mumbled softly "Don't worry about it anymore. If it makes you feel any better, the bruising should go away in about an hour, cause, you know..." She trailed off, not wanting to finish the rest of that particular sentence.

Her brown eyes carefully trailed around his open, blood stained shoulder, as though she was deciding where to stab first. She glanced at her loose, slippers glove, before she narrowed her eyes in thought. With a grunt, she ripped off her gloves, and let her once clean, unstained fingers dig deep into Bucky's skin and flesh. Her hands delicately spread out across his hot, sweaty shoulder and carefully dig into his muscle, as though he was a tough pin cushion. Right before she made her first poke however, she sighed.

"I wasn't always like this, you know..." Rosa mumbled softly, just enough to attract the ex-Winter Soldier's ears "I wasn't born like this or anything, like those mutants or inhumans that always pop up on the news. I was..." She paused, as she delicately poked her thin, blacked needle into Bucky's soft skin "normal, I guess would be the best word"

She tugged at the plastic fishing wire "I might have been pretty young but," a muffled chuckle escaped her "I practically had my life planned out for me. I guess that's what you get when one of your parents is a scientist, and the other a military man. I didn't really mind it though; I'd rather have that then be someone who doesn't know what the hell their doing at all. Well, I guess that's changed now..."

Rosa's light, crooked smile slowly melted away from her face like ice cream on a hot car, as tugged at the plastic fishing wire "I might have been pretty young but," a muffled chuckle escaped her "I practically had my life planned out for me. I guess that's what you get when one of your parents is a scientist, and the other a military man. I didn't really mind it though; I'd rather have that then be someone who doesn't know what the hell their doing at all. Well, I guess that's changed now..."

"You know...I didn't ask to be like this, all firey and stuff. Things happen"

Bucky purred his lips tightly, as he leaned further to his knees, as though he was running from the pain of the needle digging into his shoulder. It wasn't pain that that got the wheels turning in his head. Those few last words that yappy firebender said. It...

 _I didn't ask to be like this_

It...touched him. Maybe because he thought the same about himself. The guilt he's carried around ever since he regained some shred of sanity, he didn't ask for it. He didn't ask to slaughter men, women, and children alike for so called HYDRA missions. He didn't ask to be turned into a weapon. Yet, he knew nothing would erase that past of his. No matter how much he tried to justify it, talk his way through it, he still did those terrible things to others. He was the one who held the weapons. He was the one who killed.

"Why..." Bucky choked out in a empty, gruff tone "Why are you telling me this"

Rosa could only leave silence as she grabbed a cheap pair of scissors and cut the last of the fishing wire, leaving a freshly stitched wound in the place of that godawful wound. She knew that was definitely going to become a scar, and to her dismay, she knew she was going to have to replace them in time. However, when she put her tools down, she drew out her pause even further. She simply clung onto the edge of the bloody, dark red scissors, and stared down Bucky's smooth, blank back.

"I don't know," she shrugged and drew her brown eyes up "I guess it finally needed to be said"

Bucky could only lightly nod his head, as he carefully turned his head towards the brown haired firebender. As his eyes trailed around his nearly stitched up shoulder, he noticed something odd. Something odd enough to make him visibly squint and focus his razor sharp, clear blue eyes. He noticed Rosa slowly rubbing alcohol into his hot skin with her two bloodied hand. It wasn't what she was doing with her hands that made him squint, but rather was was written, etched into her thin skin. His eyes focused on three, fading numbers.

 _384_

"What's th-"

"I don't want to talk about it" Rosa cold, icy voice cut through his words like a jagged knife. The air suddenly became as cold and silent as her own voice, as though a silent blizzard ripped through the cheap motel room. Although her face became stone cold and hard, her mind was buzzing around with anxiety and worry.

She didn't need to hear the rest of that sentence to know why he was talking about. The firebender saw those clear blue eyes stare a hole practically through those evil numbers on her hand. Sure, she could just lie, but...it wasn't something she could just pretend and laugh about.

It was simply something she would drag down to her grave. Not that it would be long before she met it, she thought.


	13. (It's Only a) Wakeup Call

"Alright Wanda, let's see what you got"

Steve crossed his thick arms and stared diligently at the brown haired sorceress, ready to examine her skills. Although the blond haired man seen her on the field with her manipulative powers, he didn't know the extent of her powers. Neither Wanda, it seemed.

She softly nodded, before she laid her eyes upon a large, beaten up storage crate that had seen much better days. There, it was place on the middle of the grey scaled room, ready to be lifted and moved. The task was simple enough: gently lift the crate to the side of the room. The sorceress however, couldn't help bit of nervousness bubble up within her stomach.

She could still hardly believe it. She became the last thing she thought she would ever become. She became the thing she used to hate with a passion. An avenger. Or, at least, she was becoming one.

She squinted her eyes, and delicately lifted her hands into the air. Her once dark brown eyes lit up a brilliant scarlet red, causing a light, red fog to swim around her finger tips. The fog suddenly appeared around the huge crate, and began to swallow it like a deadly, bloody fog. The crate began to quiver and it slowly rose into the air into the clean, cold air. Wanda seemed to wince as crate painfully titled and shook in the cold air, as though the weight of it began to strain her mind. When it seemed all too much, she curled her delicate hands into tight fists, causing the red fog to melt into the air. Steve and Wanda shivered in as the storage crate came tumbling down. The metal corner immediately crashed down into the soft floor. Even Wanda knew then that the crater in the floor she magically created was going to need a ton of tender love and care. No pun intended.

With a groan, Wanda immediately swallowed her face with her hands, hiding the shame she had plastered on her face. It was so simple. It should have been so easy. Hell, she could have done it in her sleep if she wanted to. It was like once the people she tried to kill, particularly Steve, tried to watch, she felt a certain anxiety crawl into her mind. She could stop a train. Why couldn't she just lift a simple crate?

Maybe...Maybe it was...

"Why couldn't I…" She mumbled under her breath.

Steve stare at the fallen crate, but held his deep sigh within the depths of his mind. He didn't like the idea of ruining such a nice, clean base, but even he knew damage was bound to happen. That was the consequences of being an Avenger, always facing some kind of damage, he guessed. And it wasn't just physical.

He neatly folded his hands, and glanced towards Wanda "It's fine. Now, let's try this again"

"It was a very easy task…" She continued to mumble.

"Mistakes always happen. That's why we continue training when we're not on duty"

"I should have-"

She was interrupted by a warm arm that rested upon her shoulder, as though its touch stole the words from her mouth. She slowly drew her hands away from her anxious face, and stared reluctantly to her side. All she saw were those kind, baby blue eyes eyes stare oddly into her soul. It made her twitch in the very least.

"I know things have been tough since Ultron, but sometimes, getting back on your feet it the best thing to do," the blonde Avenger gave a deep sigh, and glanced away for a few seconds "I can't say I've been through what you've been through, but I know what it's like to lose someone you care about"

Wanda could only stare into the empty, threatening grey space in the back of Steve's ruffled hair. It's only been days since her best friend, her loved one, her brother, died. One thing she loved, and hated about her powers was that she could be sense what Pietro felt. She could feel his happiness, his hatred...and finally, his death. Like she revealed to ultron: it was like getting her heart ripped right out of her chest. Yet...she couldn't swim her her depression all day. She couldn't use his death in vain. She had to make that little idiot proud.

"Now, Are you up for another round?" Steve asked with a friendly smirk that seemed to tear way most of the anxiety the brown haired sorceress had. As though the raging typhoon of nervous and terrible thoughts simply quelled, she let a small, weak smile crawl to her lips.

"Sure" She nodded briefly, causing her hair to snap right in front of her brilliant eyes.

Right as she lifted her hand back into the air to have another go at the desperately trashed storage crate, the sound of light, minicle footsteps suddenly filled her ears. With her hands lightly in front of her, she snapped her head to the empty bare wall. Or, at least what should have been empty.

"Vision..." She trailed off, with an audible amount of surprise twisted in her tone "Did you...did you just do what I thought you did?"

Vision simply floated to the side, and let his cape flow neatly to the ground. He crossed his purple laced arms firmly behind the small curve of his back, as though he was nothing more than a messenger. Even if he was so much more.

"Hello Ms. Maximoff," He politely bowed slightly, before he drew his brilliant blue eyes towards Steve "And to you, Captain Rogers. And, regarding your question, I assume you saw me phase through the wall. If that was the case, then yes, I did do what you had thought"

She couldn't help but bring a tiny, weak smile to her face "You do not need to be so formal. Wanda will do alright"

Like the mechanical human being he was, he nodded swiftly back "Of course, Wanda it is then," He turns his attention to Steve "I just wanted to inform you that Mr. Stark has arrived"

"Thanks, Vision," Steve nodded, before he snapped his head to Wanda "We'll pick up where we ended sometime later. Remember, take a deep breath, and concentrate" a small, reassuring smile came to his lips. "You'll do just fine"

"Perhaps, I could assist," Vision suddenly chimed in "We do share...the origins of our powers, don't we? Perhaps we could learn from each other"

The mechanical being stared curiously at Wanda, with the same exact intense expression plastered on her face. She didn't want to dig into his brain without his permission just yet but...she couldn't read him. She couldn't read him at all. His face was just a blank, grey slate that expressed little to no human emotion. He had no twitches, no habits, no...flaws, it seemed. Yet...what should have sent a chill down her spine only heightened her curiosity.

He seemed so kind. So naively kind.

"Wanda?" The blonde avenger asked, with a raised brow of curiosity. He saw those curious states that they sent to each other. Even as much as Wanda, even Vision himself tried to hide them, a few wavering glances always escaped. It was too soon to tell if Vision was a threat to the well being to the Avengers, considering he only joined them conditionally, but, he stayed. And so did Wanda.

Wanda snapped her eyes reluctantly to the mechanical being, before she lightly nodded, bringing a weak smile to her face "That's fine, that's fine. Maybe it is a better idea"

"We'll see" The blonde avenger titled his head curiously, before he swiftly walked out of the training room, leaving the brown haired sorceress and the purple mechanical man to their own devices.

And he headed to the cocky billionaire.

* * *

"Stark"

"Rogers"

A large, pregnant pause went in between into two strained Avengers, as though each man had no idea what to spew out next to the other. Steve certainly didn't know what to bring up next. On one hand, he could simply cut through the crap and begin the Alvarez case. On the other hand...That death not was bound to be brought up anyways. These thoughts only added to the stress he already had weighing down his shoulders.

Stark by now would have made his sarcastic comment or quipped something about the blond haired avenger himself, but no more words escaped his mouth. He stood firmly in place, with his legs slightly spread out, and his hands jammed into his jean pockets, waiting for Steve to break the ever so hard ice.

Steve didn't know what to make of Stark. He simply let his doubtful baby blues scan across Tony's confident stature and bored expression, ready to yawn at any moment. Steve expected a bit of guilt, emotion, something within Tony's dark brown eyes yet...they were as blank as ever. But, they did ask for something.

A frosty drink laced with some kind of alcohol.

Steve let out a deep, tired sigh, before he raised his arm up for a handshake "...Tony"

"Capsicle," The billionaire greeted. He replied to Steve's extremely formal demeanor with a few hearty pats on his well built back. As the blonde avenger stood a bit confused, Tony leaned casually against the clean cut bar "Still working with the new recruits? Have they become a pain in the ass yet?"

Steve casually shrugged "They're not all that bad"

"Tough," Tony quipped as he tightly pursed his lips. Suddenly, he turned around and began to make his way in back on the bar, letting his fingers trail across the cold, clean granite of the bar. In one swooping motion, he lifted two empty glasses from the shelf, and tossed them upon the table, along with what looked like to be a hearty bottle of rum.

"What will it be cap?" He asked, as he snapped the cap off and let the dark, velvety liquid run into the cup "I'm feeling particularly kind today. It's a once in the lifetime offer, you know. Don't expect it again"

Steve watched as a the river of liquid that escaped the bottle became a trickle, until Tony finally capped it, and set the rum onto the table. With that, Tony cupped the drink lazily into his hand, waiting for a response.

"I'm fine" the blonde avenger answered back quickly.

Tony shrugged, before he took a quick sip "Your loss"

"I'll be able to sleep at night"

"Sure, sure you will" the brown haired billionaire rested upon the bar, where he spread out his hand across its shiny surface. He couldn't help but sarcastically roll his eyes like a sassy teenager who was getting lectured from his parents. Or someone who was being lied to.

Small talk. Steve hated it. Just the entire concept that surrounded it was a waste of his time. He just wanted to dive into the topic at hand, the meat of the situation, not skim around it like a holding back curse words at a church. As much as he wanted to say something, being pushy wasn't going to get him anywhere, even if that was the entire definition of the cocky billionaire. Being a bit too intrusive.

He crossed his arms, and set his eyes onto the relatively listless Tony "So, Ultron,"

Right as Stark took another big gulp of his drink, he feverishly shook his hand, causing him to slightly gasp as he pulled the sweet cup from his lips "I didn't come here to play that game with the murder bot. I came to…" He paused, and shook his head slightly "Actually, if you would be kind enough to give me the rundown on the situation. You talked about girl spewing fire or something over the phone?"

Steve sighed, like a disappointed parent "Tony, we went over this"

"Just pretending to be coy, Cap. You see, after a particularly long time sitting in good ol' NYC traffic, I took the liberty to dig a bit deeper into your situation or whatever," He raised his finger into the air matter-o-factly, before he slid his drink across the table. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he pulled a small tablet from under the bar and began to press and scan away "You know, for appearances and all that"

Steve raised his brows in surprise, causing his forehead to crinkle "Oh, really. A busy guy like you had the time to peak through the few files?"

"I just implied that with my little story about traffic," The billionaire explained "Surprised? Shocked? Scared?"

Steve lightly chuckled "Not one of those damn things"

Tony pointed his finger accusingly "Language"

"How long are you gonna milk that"

"For quite a while, thank you very much"

"Anyhow…" Steve took a large sigh, attempting to actually get to work "First thoughts?"

Tony slid his finger cleanly across the screen, revealing none other than his new target. Age? Probably in her mid twenties, nothing more than a kid. Condition? Alvarez looked a little worse for wear in the photo depicted of her in what seemed like a tiny diner in need of a bit of TLC. A bit of make up and rest wouldn't hurt her. State of mind? That was what Stark could easily tell from the small lines that lined her smiling face. Her light brown eyes were wide and aware, as though they were scanning every inch of the man she waited on in the photo. It looked more like she was serving the president of the freaking USA than just a construction man on his lunch break. They were the eyes of someone who thought they were living day to day. They were the eyes of someone who knew they were being watched every single day. If it wasn't the FBI, then who?

Stark pursed his lips tight, and slid the photo across, out of sight and out of mind "Kid, taking the metaphor 'live everyday like its your last' a bit too far. And when she kicked a particular set of cans over, she bolted like no tomorrow. I'm just making a hypothesis here, but I'm guessing she ran into your old war buddy, and he followed. No connections, no strings attached, plain and simple"

"That's what I'm thinking too," Steve agreed "Just a ghost and a phantom who are afraid of consequences"

Consequences...he could easily understand why Alvarez was running from the law. She didn't want to face what comes after burning a few bodies to a nice crisp, like any other criminal who was running from the government. Bucky on the other hand...that was a bit of a mystery to him. He read his files. He's read his mission reports. He read what HYDRA turned him into. All he was was a puppet to them, and nothing more. Sure, a few consequences would come if Buck turned himself in, but he would be safe. He wouldn't have to look over his shoulder every five minutes. He would be with...Steve again...with him.

If he wasn't being used anymore, why was he still running?

"So, I'm assuming this is all for Barnes, huh?"

The blonde avenger blinked out his thoughts, causing him to raise his brow questionably "I beg your pardon?"

"Not to question your ethics or anything, but call me a realist:" The billionaire shrugged "Everyone had an agenda here. And I'm guessing yours isn't concerned with Alvarez or whatever her name is"

Steve tightly crossed his arms "Why did you decide to come then?"

"You'd think a man would be welcomed back with a hug, maybe a kiss, or a nice watch or two after you save the earth from mass destruction, but that wasn't the case. Pepper thought it would be a good idea to get me outta the house, go golfing like what Barton's probably doing right about now. Then, you called"

"Then, what's the problem?" Steve asked.

Tony slowly shook his head, and produced a clicking sound "Nothing, nothing. Just checking to see where your priorities are before I start taking a crack at all this"

"What's the hold up?"

The brown eyes man scoffed "For the so called "man with the plan", you sure are asking a lot of questions, aren't you Steve?"

He immediately sighed "I'm just making sure this isn't some side project to you. If you're going to help, treat it like a mission"

"I am, I am. Now's not the time to get your panties in a tight bunch" Tony held up his hands in defense. It was so painfully obvious to him. Any other idiot who was half blind would be able to see it. Hell, Tony himself had no reason to care about Steve's reasons, but he could see it as clear as day. He wanted his metal armed buddy back, the Winter Soldier. Alvarez, as interesting as she could have been, wasn't the main priority. She was simply the icing on the cake Steve used to justify all of this, if he wanted to realize that it not. Being Captain America, he probably already did. But, Tony didn't mind.

And as long as he was fixated on that, he wouldn't have to hear another peep about Ultron.

He didn't need another lecture about his so called security bot turned murder weapon. He knew that he screwed up, even with the countless people yelling in his ear didn't keep telling him about his mistake. That type of AI wasn't entirely out of the question yet, but for now, it was tucked away in a box in the corner of his filled mind. Not entirely out of mind, but still there.

"So, you said something about a laptop?" Tony asked, as he set the tablet upon the table, and gracefully popped himself into the bar chair.

Steve nodded, and pulled a rather large, silver plated laptop from a black bag. It was filled with thick scratches and colorful stickers that seemed to have nearly every large city in the country plastered onto them. Even a tiny Captain America symbol was stuck right onto the farthest right corner. With that, he placed it right in front of the eager Tony, who simply cracked his fingers hungrily, reading to dig right into his specialty.

"Yeah," Steve replied "It's from Alvarez's friend. You remember what happened to him, right?"

"Hit by a car, then everything turned into a shitshow from there" Tony shrugged casually as his words.

"Sharon was kind enough to lend it to us. The CIA wasn't able to get through it, so they thought so one who broken into the firewall of the Pentagon could. We're thinking it may have a few leads on where the girl may be headed, along Bucky" Steve explained "Think you can hit it?"

"Piece of cake. Give me a few," Tony simply opened the laptop, and began to type away "Good, some idiot didn't turn it off. If he did, memory could be erased right off this puppy, you'd of screwed right about now. I just need to hack into the firewall and-"

Suddenly, as Tony randomly, as meticulously typed away the green, cramped coding that tiny was once typing began to sputter out of control, causing the screen to pixelate into vibrant, clean colors. He suddenly jerked his hands into the air, as the screen bugged out of control, washing away all of the coding he did. All there was was a giant, black screen that only reflected back his tired, squinted eyes. Seconds later, the screen flickered back to life, revealing two, giant white words.

 _Try again_

With its short, sweet message, it flicked back to the home screen, leaving a small, flickering arrow and a text box.

Tony squinted once again, before he bent back into his chair. He was at square one. Again.

"What happened?" Steve asked, as he clamped his hand onto the cold surface of the bar. He barely knew a thing about coding, let alone computers themselves.

"Hm," Tony curiously tilted his head, as he shoved his hands behind his head "He really built up his defenses, I'll give the little bugger that. It's like he's protecting something a bit more secret than some porn pics. Much more"

"He has something he didn't want just anyone to see" Steve thought, only inciting his curiosity "I think it's gonna take you more than just a few, Tony"

Tony sighed in agreement, causing him to place his fingers upon his chin, thinking of his next plan of attack "Alright then. Give me...a few hours, my drink, some background music and maybe a sandwich. Hacking through someone else's personal belongings always puts me in the mood for a sandwich"

Steve could only shake his head unbelievably, before he simply walked away.

"You know what sound great Steve? A montecristo!" Tony shouted, causing Steve to chuckle as he walked right out if the room.

"Sure Tony, Sure" Steve replied ever so sarcastically.

At least he could count on one thing. He was headed in the right direction. Towards Bucky.

* * *

 **So, there's a little Steve and Tony for you. I thought it was important that Tony would show up at some point, considering with the stuff with Ultron nearly a week ago (In the fic timeline), and I know some of you wanted to see them. Anyways, we'll check up on Bucky and Rosa next chapter and their adventure to escape the** **government.**

 **You also may have noticed that I changed the cover photo for this fic. I thought i was about time to change it, another way to celebrate over 8,500 reads! You guys are awesome! Thanks for checking this fic out!**

 **I also have some news. Recently, I posted this fic on Wattpad, about a few weeks ago. I have the same user name and the same face image that i have here. The fic is obviously under the same name, but if your more of a wattpad reader, check it out!** **I also added a playlist and gif images to add to the overall tone of the chapters as well, so I can potray each chapter as I imagined them to be. I only have the first chapter up there so far, but I'm planning to post there every Sunday, along with pictures and gifs. (I'm planning to post the cast, or what actress I thought of when i created Rosa. Find out who I picked next Sunday on Wattpad!). More information on my profile.**

 **Anyways, hoped you enjoyed! Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	14. (Don't You Want to Go to) Fantasy Island

Rosa slowly flipped the small flash drive between her fingers, lost in thought. She pulled down the bit of her cap closer to her eyes, and glanced up. What she was staring back was the young firebender, though the reflection of a computer, staring through her mind and soul. It was about time to check whatever the hell was on the flash drive. Cliff gave it to her for a reason, hell he ripped it out of his pocket when he was on his deathbed.

She couldn't help but bite her lip at the thought of her old friend-no, friend. She didn't know why she still thought of him. Sure, he passed only days ago, but there was no bringing him back. He was as good, as, well, dead. Crying wasn't going to bring Cliff back. But...she avenged his death, in her mind. Now, to complete her avenging, she had to investigate the flash drive. Plain and simple.

 _So...let's check you out…_ Rosa thought, as she pressed the power button

As Rosa waited impatiently for the computer to beep to life, Bucky hid buried within the aisle and aisle of books. It was like a forest of random words to him, filled with stories of different variations. What caught his attention however wasn't whatever the book club poster had plastered, or the cheap magazines thrown on the shelf. It was the history section. It was the World War II section. It was the section with the star spangled man with a plan.

Although the Captain America section wasn't brimming with books, it certainly had a healthy amount of novels to entice a nerd or history fanatic. Bucky wasn't any of those however, not today at least. He was just a guy looking for answers, that all.

He squinted his clear blue eyes, and slid a book from its hiding place. He trailed his eyes over the cover, that depicted a simple picture of an old picture of Steve himself, patriotically saluting into the the distance. Although Steve face looks about as blank as the book next to it, he could read Steve like the book he held in his hand. His face read utter patriotism, a man willing to do anything in his power to protect his country. Like the idiot he was, always getting into trouble.

That punk.

Bucky suddenly brought a ghost of a smile to his lips-so faint not even the girl who spews out power could even read it. Not that she really gave a crap about it however. Hell, who knows if she was even looking towards him.

With a deep sigh, he slid the book cleanly back into its place on the shelf. He looked up to Rosa, who seemed be be having a ball of fun. In other words, tapping her fingers furiously against the table as she watched the computer screen fizzle to life.

Scanning around, Bucky walked quietly behind Rosa "Are you done?"

"Yeah, almost, if this damn computer would start up faster. It'd be better as a pile of bricks at this point" The brown haired firebender replied with a tired sigh. Now was not the time to get frustrated. She could scream high to the heavens once she got to that safe house.

The ex-Winter Soldier replied with a soft nod, and snapped his head around the library like a radar. He could feel others eyes pierce through his head. He could feel the occasional glance from the librarian. He could feel the long stares from parents. He could feel every little eye study him. All of it only made his stomach turn. He just wants to break out of here.

Rosa finally widened her eyes in relief once the home screen finally popped up. Like lightning, she rammed that flash drive into the computer. Seconds later, the flash drive popped up on the computer, labeled one simple word.

 _Exodus_

She didn't hesitate to click it.

"What the hell..." Rosa whispered in surprise, or rather utter shock.

The once blue, neat screen fizzled from life, like someone yanked the computer right from the wall. She had to squint her eyes as blinding colors popped up onto the screen, flickering out every few seconds. Suddenly, the screen went nearly pitch black. Almost.

Two simple things appeared onto the screen. A blocky text box, and a picture painted in a blood dark red. It revealed the dark red world shrouded what appeared to be a flag that whipped just below it. What was written just below it certainly made her scratch her head. And made her stomach turn inside out.

 _Rising Tide_

"What in gods name did you get yourself into?" She mumbled in shock.

What the hell was Cliff doing? What the hell did he do behind her back-or even right in front of her own two eyes. She didn't have a single fucking clue what the 'Rising Tide' was all about. Piecing together that idiot red heads love for his laptop, and his unarmed clients, she could only assume it had to do with the Internet. The not so legal side of it, in blatant terms.

She could feel her heart racing out of her chest, as though she was running for her life. She felt her hand clamp on tighter to the edge of the desk, causing her to swallow up whatever laid buried in her stomach. She didn't understand. She didn't understand anything: what Exodus was, The Rising Tide was, and to her ultimate dismay...maybe even her own friend.

She shoved that thought right out of her head like a bad friend. Cliff had to of had a reason to do whatever the hell he did. On that note...

With a quick internet search, she searched up the not so mysterious organization, and found her answer.

 _Rising Tide is an anonymous network of hacktivists dedicated to exposing the existence of superhuman and powered individuals, and generally establishing freedom of information across a wide range of areas. They mainly target organizations that main priority is security, such as the FBI and formally SHIELD._

 _-network of hacktivists dedicated to exposing the existence of superhuman and powered individuals..._

 _-exposing the existence of superhuman and powered individuals..._

Her heart crashed to the ground.

It didn't make one shred of sense to her. Cliff was selling information? He had to be, if he was magically making the rent nearly every month, and if he loaded up those false credit cards like a candy dispenser. But...was he selling information about her? He couldn't have been. It didn't make any sense to her. She's knew him for more than 10 years, hell, they grew up in the same foster home.

Something awful twisted in her stomach however. Why did he nearly guard this information with his life? Maybe...just maybe...he knew a little more about her than she even knew herself. She told him about how her powers were basically shoved into her body, he knew all that. He even knew about the three little numbers etched into her thin skin. If he had the resources to literally hack into everything he could lay his fingers on, what not to say he got a few files?

A few filed about her. And sold them.

She shoved that last part right out of her mind. It didn't make any sense but...she still believed Cliff to be a good man. Sure, he could be horribly sarcastic at times, maybe even a little bitchy at times, but he wasn't evil. She's seen evil right before her eyes, and Cliff couldn't fit the bill.

She wanted to desperately wanted to prove just that.

Rosa yanked the flash drive right out of the computer, causing it to flicker from the black screen that once consumed it, to a regular old home screen. She clenched her teeth as a loud hiss pierced through her ears, causing her to lightly hold her ears. She finally shuffled through the line of chairs, and nearly bumped into the ex-Winter Soldier.

Bucky could already feel her presence even before the weird fire girl crashed into the table next to him. He could hear her clumsy footsteps approach him. He could hear her rapid breathing, as though she was running from something rather terrible. He could easily tell something happened. It was just a matter of what that picked at his mind.

"Come on, let's go," Rosa replied in a nearly demanding tone "I'm getting hungry anyways"

Bucky opened his mouth, but the words failed to escape. With absolutely nothing to reply with, he shut his mouth tight. As much as that question picked at his mind, about the firebender, it was like it refused to come out. He knew exactly why, however. It wasn't that much of a mystery.

The ex-Winter Soldier pursed his lips and nodded. Satisfied, Rosa bobbed and weaved through the chairs, until something particularly shiny caught her eye. Although she didn't quite show it, a ghost of a smile appeared in her mind. She carefully scanned her light brown eyes across the empty library, before he fingers gingerly crawled across the table. Without hesitation, she swept the laptop clean off the table, and tucked it under her arm.

She could help but feel her heart beat to insanity as those cameras seemed to four on her. Even if they didn't, hell, even if they didn't have any, she knew they would soon or later.

Those cameras didn't make Bucky feel too hot either. In fact, like little needles, he could feel those cameras live through his skin, waiting to uncover the dangerous criminal he was.

Or at least, what others said about him.

* * *

 _There goes the last of the money..._ Rosa dramatically thought, as the last plate of pancakes were slid right in front of her. Although her funds weren't fully depleted, she could we the end of her wallet coming pretty soon. Real soon.

Plates upon plates were stuffed right into the tiny booth of the diner were the two fugitives sat. Everything from fluffy eggs to crispy french toast were stacked high upon the table, leaving just enough room from Bucky's 4th of coffee and Rosa's 3rd iced tea. And they haven't even touched their food yet.

Bucky of course, being a genetically modified super soldier, needed as much as he could lay his hands on. It wasn't like he could turn his strength off, it was just always there. And unfortunately for Rosa and her credit cards, they had no idea that Bucky was genetically modified such as the firebender herself. So, when he kept on ordering plate after plate off the menu, the color from her face drained as quickly as the brown haired homeless man chugged his coffee down. It didn't help that she spit fire out of her hands either.

Rosa saw the nearly terrified waitress face when she plopped the last plate down. It was a mix of confusion and terror, as though she didn't see the huge tip to come her way soon. With wide, shocked eyes, the waitress huddled back, and clung onto her serving plate.

"I-I think that's everything" the waitress said in amazement "Are you certain you didn't misspeak?"

Rosa smiled politely "Yeah, it's all good here"

"You both ordered quite a lot..."

"I'm...uh...pregnant," The brown haired firebender quickly lied "And he's, uh, a body builder"

The nervous waitress opened her mouth, but quickly shut it an instant. With a anxious nod, she quickly scurried back into the kitchen, probably waiting to gossip about her customers. Right as the large door swung to a close, Rosa sighed in relief.

"Thank god she gone..." She practically prayed to the skies. Satisfied, she picked up her fork and pierced her fluffy pancakes.

Bucky intensely stared at his plate as he gingerly trailed his finger around the rim of the ceramic. He searched for a reflection, a reflection of the other lightly bearded man that usually stared back at him, but he was nowhere in sight. All there was was the beaten up white plate littered with scratches. And nothing else.

As much as the brown haired firebender wanted to dig into her fluffy pancakes and eat through her troubles, it seemed this time food couldn't quite bring her out of reality. She couldn't get Cliff out of her mind. She couldn't get the Rising Tide out of her mind. She couldn't get what her dead best friend could have done. It was like a parasite of worry that ate and ate at her mind until she wasn't mad with the same question that plagued her.

What the hell had Cliff done?

With another tired sigh, she pushed that thought like many of her worried thoughts right at the back of her mind. She had another thing to worry about. Many things. Like the homeless guy, Bucky that sat in front of her.

Someone that was actually alive.

"You could use a shave, you know that, right?" Rosa suddenly tuned in causing the ex-Winter soldier to snap his clear blue eyes up.

"What?" He softly asked as he sipped onto his stark black coffee.

"You're beginning to look a bit bushy there, that's all"

"Is that a problem?"

"No, no, it's just for a guy who lived in a basement of an abandoned building, you only had a little stubble. It didn't seem like a good shave was your first priority back there either" Rosa commented with a shrug.

Bucky paused, as though he was decoding a rather tough and hidden message. He didn't know to take the firebenders comment on a will or as an insult, not that he cared in the first place however. It was simply an abrupt sentence out of nowhere, like she pulled it right out the sky or her ass. Probably the former. So, staying silent, he shifted his attention to the busy streets of the unknown city, trying to make sense of his surroundings.

"Oh" Was all the ex-Winter Soldier replied with as he briefly glanced at the light brown eyed firebender.

"I'm sure we can pick up a few razors or something on the way," Rosa assured, as she dug into her light scrambled eggs "My legs are feeling like sandpaper anyways"

The long haired man pursed his lips uncomfortably "I'm fine"

"Uh huh, keep telling yourself that," Rosa snored, "I see the way you keep on scratching your face. It's like a forest up there"

"Really, I'm fine"

"It's not that big of a deal"

"I know"

"Then why?"

"Because, I'm alright"

Suddenly, Rosa released a well needed tired sigh. She carefully stretched out her elbow to the only spot of the table that wasn't shielded with food or a plate, and leaned her face firmly into her rather hot hand. Although she wasn't as frustrated as she was when she rammed into a concrete divider and nearly skinned off Bucky's face and crashed into the steering wheel, but she could feel her temper begin to rise. With another large sigh, she felt her frustration subdue into...tolerance.

She didn't know why this guy had to be difficult. It seemed like whenever she attempted to tell him something or offer him anything for that matter, he would simply push it away. It was like Bucky was pushing away her kindness in her mind. In Bucky's mind however, he was carefully making sure Rosa knew little to nothing about...his past, so to speak.

And as long as he intended to do just that, he would survive and escape the government. Who knows how Rosa would react if she ever found out.

She wouldn't understand. Not at all.

The brown haired firebender gently leaned back into the plastic surface of the booth, and stared at the clear blue eyes man with a hint of disappointment.

"Could you be honest with me for a second?" Rosa sighed, drawing her eyes to her clearly unfinished plate of pancakes.

Bucky could only pause in thought, before he reluctantly set his fork down silently "What?"

"Why is it so hard for you to accept anything?"

"...what do you mean?"

Rosa sighed and wrapped her warm hands around her arms "It seems like whenever I try to be a decent human being you shove anything I try to offer you away. It was…" She paused, carefully choosing her next words that didn't start with a well wanted swear " _annoying_ at first. I thought maybe you were just being humble or something like that. But now…."

Bucky knew exactly how she wanted to finish that sentence, even if the words evaded her (or so it seemed). It was painfully obvious to him. And, as much as he wanted to deny that and shrug it off, he simply couldn't. He couldn't deny those stinging feelings anymore.

"It's painful?" Bucky answered back, sounding an ever bit hoarse.

Rosa could only shake her head "Not exactly. It's..it's …" She sighed, struggling to find the words she wanted to say "Yeah, I guess painful. More for you than me I'm guessing"

"I don't know" the ex-Winter Soldier shrugged

"Me either," She replied with a weak smile "I guess it didn't matter anymore"

"It still does to you"

"Am I that obvious?"

"Yeah"

The brown haired firebender chuckled lightly, causing her nose to scrunch up "Yeah, I couldn't even convince myself...I'm just trying to be nice, that's all Bucky"

He tightly pursed his lips "I know"

"Then why do you push it all away?"

"It's…" he paused, and sighed "the way I was built"

Rosa lightly nodded, only taking his comment by a grain of salt. She of course thought that that was how the weird homeless man was raised. How all his life, he couldn't take kindness from others because he could never return it. Not because he was quite literally built that way. Not because he was a weapon. Not because of what HYDRA turned him into.

So, she only shrugged and scooped up her fork back into her tightly gloved hands "Hey, aren't we all?"

With that, Rosa pushed that confrontation aside and continued her hearty breakfast meal. Bucky simply sat and stared, as though the expected another word to roll out of her mouth. With nothing but fluffy disk of cake that filled her mouth however, the long haired man gradually picked up his stark black cup of coffee and began to guzzle it down once more. Her questions were finally all answered. He could continue in what was close to peace in his uncertain life.

For the seconds, anyways.

As Rosa shoved another forkful of her meal, she glanced up to the large television screen that sat right over the decrepit bar. What was usually full of guys chucking footballs at each other was replaced with what seemed like just another news channel, doing something on what seemed like meaningless political story.

 _"...Yeah, yeah, we'll have to note what his final decision is on the matter,"_ the well dressed man continued from the topic Rosa only jumped into " _Now, we bring other news relating to this topic. Janice?"_

The camera suddenly panned to a blonde haired woman with incredibly curly hair, with a stern red lipped frown _"Thank you Hank"_

Suddenly, the news headliner appeared ever so delicately at the bottom to the screen. It immediately caught her attention, causing her to slowly draw her fork away from her mouth. And it wasn't for the reason she expected.

 _Super Soldier and Mutant On The Run_

 _"A HYDRA agent and a mutant are currently evading government capture. These two individuals, James Buchanan Barnes and Rosalind Alvarez have committed numerous crimes, varying from 1st degree murder to theft. They are marked by the FBI and are considered to be extremely dangerous. Former Sergeant Barnes is accused of working with the terrorist group HYDRA and is documented from the SHIELD leaks over a year ago to have killed over 30 individuals over the course of the latter part of the 20th century..."_

A picture suddenly popped up on the screen, revealing the most recent photo of the so called Sergeant. Although his face was slightly blurred out from his rapid punch into a CIA agents stomach, not even his thickly matted brown hair could cover his face. That grimace, it was familiar. That hair, it was pretty obvious. Those clear blue eyes, that spoke of the emotions he couldn't say, that was unmistakable.

Rosa widened her horrified brown eyes, causing her fork to crash into her plate. She slowly glanced down to the brown haired man, the what seemed like months to her already. That hair. That face. Those...eyes.

Those goddam crystal clear blue eyes.

"Buck...y?" Was all that Rosa could squeeze out of her tight lungs.

The ex-Winter Soldier knew exactly what she was talking about. She didn't have to say a single word. Her terrified, light brown eyes said enough. And this time, not a speck of her bright orange powers seeped into her eyes.

Bucky. Sergeant Barnes. HYDRA agent. She wasn't sitting in front of just anyone. Hell, she wasn't just sitting in front of any killer.

She was inches across a mass murder. She was inches across the Winter Soldier.

She was inches from HYDRA's grasp.

Again.

* * *

 **Thank you guest for your review!**

 **Wow, a lot happened in this chapter! I figured it was about time for Rosa to actually find out that Bucky is-or was the Winter Soldier. Considering they're on the run, she was bound to find out. And now...Bucky has to deal with the consequences...**

 **I am officially out of school! (WOOOT!). And actually, I'm supposed to graduate high school next week, so that will be fun. On that note...I'm probably going to have the same updating schedule I have now, basically irregular. I'll update as soon as I can, but I start college literally a WEEK after I graduate so...yeah. Ill do my best to make time!**

 **Thank you to all who favorited and followed this fic! You are all great!**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	15. Panic (Hang The Blessed HYDRA)

_Again. Again. Again._

Those were the only words that raced through Rosa's scared, terrified mind. She couldn't comprehend anything else in the diner, expect the mass freaking murderer that sat inches in front of her. Bucky-no-the Winter Soldier had so many opportunities to kill her. Hell, she nearly did die a day ago.

She couldn't let HYDRA do anything to her again. Never again.

"Rosa..." Bucky whispered ever so quietly under his breath, yet pierced right through the firebender's ears. Like a parasite, his voice infected her tangled mind, not knowing how to take it at all. It sounded so sweet to her, so familiar, but she knew deep within her heart she couldn't trust it. She couldn't him.

In a flash, Rosa's fist slammed into the table, causing the dishes to clatter and clang. Before the brown haired man could comprehend the firebender's next actions, she leapt from the booth and left the diner swiftly. She barely said a thing, let alone an apology when she slammed into the waitress. Bucky could easily read her face, he didn't need to see it. It was a face he was quite familiar with, actually.

Terror.

With a groan that spelled the end of the world, Bucky buried his gloved heads deep into his face, and leaned onto the counter. That's was it. It was all over. His plan, her plan, their plan was in shambles. Everything was a complete shit show now that she finally found out who he really was. He pretty much knew the weird firebender would react badly, but he expected anger, not fear. He expected a clean fireball to the face, not wide, brown eyes. Even if it was only days since he's known Rosa, he knew she was capable of burning him to a crisp, as she would always say, but it was like once she found out, all of that simply washed away. It was like she was a child who found out there was another round of shots for them at the doctor's office. It was just plain fear, simple as that.

It confused the hell out of him. Yet, everything did. Not just her, but whatever was in this age in general.

Bucky silently groaned, and reluctantly drew his clear blue eyes towards the television screen. Sure enough, his picture, the picture of the Winter Soldier on the highway, was still plastered onto the corner.

 _"...he his considered armed and extremely dangerous,"_ the woman continued _"Please advise from making contact this individual"_

Suddenly, the image blinked out of existence, and was replaced with a darkly lit video. Bucky was forced to squint, to even see a sliver of detail, but he could make out the main details. There, he saw a dark car, racing towards a woman soaked to the skin in hot, sticky blood. The woman dangerously shot out arm, as though it was a gun. However, when flames leapt from her hands and picked through the car, all became clear. It was the weird fire girl alright. That's was Rosa.

" _Alvarez is believed to have pyrokinetic abilities that have killed two and have put two in critical injury. At this moment in time, not much is known about Alvarez or her motives, however she is considered extremely dangerous. If you know any information on their whereabouts, please call your local TIPS line or your local authorities"_

The long haired man's clear blue eyes seemed to flash with a spark of emotion, through this thick fingers and hair. They seemed to slowly widen at the sudden, yet clear realization of the girl who traveled with him for nearly days. She...killed?

It wasn't much of a surprise. She did have the power to burn everything around her. Anyone was capable of killing, really. The paper boy could easy shoot rounds bullets instead of papers. The friendly waitress could easily smash that glass cup into someone's head instead of setting it down. He could have continued to cling onto her neck until the life leapt from her eyes. Killing was second nature to the Winter Soldier, it was just apart of him he couldn't quite shake off yet. But...the way Rosa carried herself, Something told Bucky there was something more than what the news spelled out. Unless, she was just plain evil, but that was a stretch.

There had to be something more. Much more.

As Bucky mustred up the courage to go outside, Rosa tried everything in her tiny little tool box that was her mind to keep herself together and NOT turn the diner into a pile of cinders. Panic and terror still filled her mind and heart. She couldn't pry of her hands of her head, let alone stop pacing back and forth like a madman. Hell, she could barely stop her heart from racing out of her chest. The only thing that was in her head was that god damn man. It was Bucky-no-the freaking Winter Soldier.

He was just the mindless soldier who barely changed a shade when he choked the life out of someone. She saw those soulless, empty blue eyes when his hands were around her neck, it wasn't her imagination. Now, when she saw those clear blue eyes, she could only think of one. Sickening word.

 _еще раз_

 **Again**

The soft shifting of pebbles on the ground nearly made her jump high into the air and scream high to the heavens. She didn't need to snap her head around to see who it was. The silence was enough.

"Rosa…" Bucky softly trailed off, attempting to calm her down. Yet, when Rosa snapped her body around, the only thing he saw out of everything were her wide, light brown eyes.

"G-get the h-hell away from me" Rosa stuttered as she carefully backed up, as though she was facing a monster within her nightmares. Her shaky hands were held up defensively, like two claws ready to spit out fire. Yet, no matter how much they shook, they failed to light up that familiar warm orange. The only warm thing that was plastered on her face was a bright red, ready to spill out familiar, fearful tears.

Right when Bucky carefully took a step towards her, she jerked back, and clamped her hands tight into a ball. She visibly swallowed what seemed to be her excess fear, and let her lungs scream for well needed air.

He took a silent breath "I can explain"

"We're-We're way past that," Rosa squeaked "Your t-t-the Winter Soldier. Holy shit...I healed an assassin…"

Bucky immediately narrowed his eyes at the name, as though they were sickening to his ears. With that, she took a firm step forward, causing Rosa to shoot up her hands.

"My name is Bucky" The brown haired man said louder.

"I...I…" She was a loss of words. She wanted to snap back so badly. She wanted to quip the eyes of danger. She wanted to be that type of person who was sarcastic and bitchy when all seemed lost. She wanted some goddamn courage, yet...It was like it was all washed away. No matter how hard she tried to concentrate on her powers, flames failed to spark. Rosa felt utterly useless. She felt utterly helpless.

Like those three little numbers always said she would always be.

"Goddamn it..." Rosa mumbled clearly, as a tear dripped from her eye.

All Bucky could do was sigh and step back. It seemed nearly useless. He knew well enough when terror and fear filled someone, nothing could be done. When fear filled a man's eyes, all they could do was scream and beg for mercy until the Winter Soldier finally eliminated them. This was different however. He wasn't about to take the firebender's life away, as it seemed she thought.

He couldn't change his past, but it didn't have to dictate his future.

"I don't do that anymore" Bucky replied calmly.

'What, _killing_?"

"Yeah"

Rosa attempted to reply with a dry chuckle, but all that came from her lips was a pathetic squeak "That-That doesn't make it any better. At all. You're still with HYDRA"

"I'm not HYDRA" The ex-Winter Soldier said lowly.

Rosa violently jerked her finger towards herself "W-what the hell do they w-want with me? Why do-do they still want me?"

"What-"

"What more can they take away?"

Bucky squinted his eyes, as a realization suddenly passed right by him like a fighter jet blazing through the sky "What did they do to you?"

The familiar words simply skipped right past Rosa, skipping past the his obvious cut connection with HYDRA. Like a burst barrel, the words simply spilled right out her. She couldn't contain the pain anymore. She always shared it with Cliff yet...He want here anymore. He was gone. And so was her sanity along with him.

"HYDRA helped TURN me into this!" The firebender nearly shouted at the top of her lungs, jabbing her finger tight at her hot face "They wanted to make me into a weapon, so they ran test after test after test over and over and OVER AGAIN! They kept me in a cell and treated me like I was rat, a subject, NOTHING!" her flat, shaky plans became angry, vibrating fits, as her light brown eyes narrowed into deadly shards, ready to light everything around her.

"Ro-"

"And you want to take me all back to THAT?! EVERYTIME HYDRA tried to get me again, I would run away, but now…" Suddenly, her tight, vein-filled fits began to glow a bright, warm orange once more, and traveled all the way to her narrowed, spectacular eyes "I can't run anymore. I'm so tired of running from them. I can run from the government all the live long day, but HYDRA…" She snapped open her palm, revealing a tower of bright, violent flames "They have to die"

The memories sliced cleanly through her mind. She remembered the crystal clear, blood curdling screams that were always welcomed. She remembered the dying people who dies right in front of her eyes. She remembered the countless experiments, all painful in their own ways. She remembered it all. She remembered every little detail.

And she wanted desperately wanted to get rid of them. And she could do that through the Winter Soldier.

That was it. Bucky knew Rosa finally lost every shred of sense she had left. There was no use reasoning with her anymore. All her sanity was lost within the fire of her eyes. He knew very well she could kill him in a blink of an eye. And so could he. So, with a sigh, he carefully slipped of his only glove and stuffed it into his jacket pocket. There, he stretched out his glaring silver hand, causing it to screech and shift around, as though it was warming up.

He shifted his clear blue eyes straight up, pierced right through Rosa's sunset orange ones.

"I didn't ask to be this"

"...what?"

Although Rosa failed to loosen her flaming hands from her defensive body, her narrowed eyes softened in confusion.

The ex-Winter Soldier paused, and let the sound of flames consume their ears "I didn't ask to be this"

"A Killer, an assassin, what?" Rosa replied in disgust, tensing up like a stick.

"Whatever HYDRA made me"

"What the hell did they make you?"

Bucky paused once more, choosing his words. He could easily say he didn't know, like he always did. He could easily pretend to be naive and say he didn't know a thing. Yet...It didn't feel right. It would be a complete lie not only to Rosa, but most importantly, to himself. It was hard to lie to either one of them, no matter how many times he's done and tried.

"The fist of HYDRA," Bucky replied bluntly "They made a weapon out of me"

 _I didn't ask to be like this_

Her eyes widened into two large saucers, causing the bright, angry orange to flush from her eyes. The sunset color gradually disappeared from her skin and from her veins, returning to her natural state of fear and only slight terror. Bucky's light blue eyes only spoke of the truth. Instead of the empty darkness she used to see from them, she saw only one thing.

Guilt. Just pure guilt. It was a guilt only one could have when they took another life away. It was the look she saw the mirror nearly every day, staring right back at her.

It was too familiar.

More steamy tears fell from her incredibly red face "I-I saw people die Bucky, so many people"

"So did I" Bucky replied ever so calmly, as though his statement was meant to be taken lightly. In reality however, his words spoke more than even what he could say. All he could do was purse his lips tightly, hiding the rest of his words tightly within him.

Rosa slowly lowered her hand, and let her brown eyes stare off blankly into the distance of the thick trees and the rough terrain, "But it's different for you, you're used to it"

"I'm not," Bucky replied louder, revealing his cracked voice "I never was"

"Why is that?

"Because, I remember all of them"

"But so do I"

All the was left between the two former HYDRA subjects was complete silence. Although Rosa hid her true feelings behind a mask of sweat and tears, she was stunned. She didn't know whether to believe Bucky or not. She seems all over the news that the Winter Soldier brought nothing but hopelessness and death, but...no matter how hard she tried to convince herself, this couldn't have been the man. This couldn't have been the same man who only let silence as he stabbed the life out of his prey. This couldn't have been the same man who's empty eyes were the last thing the innocent people who he killed saw. This couldn't have been the Bucky she's known for only days. Sure, it might have been a stupid and naive thing to actually believe the weird homeless man, but she couldn't count on at least one thing.

She wasn't dead. She would have died a LONG time ago if the news was really true. She knew how HYDRA worked, and that was to eliminate the target as soon as possible.

Maybe that's why Rosa burned that truck into a clean crisp.

The ex-Winter Soldier could still see the absolute suspicion within Rosa's light brown eyes, but it seemed to soften with every giving second. He could barely comprehend why he even bothered to try and talk the firebender out of potentially burning him to cinders when he could have simply ran away in a flash. Simple as that. Maybe it was because his chance of turning into ash was particularly high. Or maybe it was because he wanted to lift up that facade that was painfully clear on her.

With a deep sigh, Rosa slid her warm tears off her face and tucked her soaked hair right behind her ear.

"I didn't expect all of this, I guess…" Rosa mumbled loudly. She glanced up to the now known e-Winter Soldier, with absolutely no fear within her eyes. As usual, Bucky kept his mouth tight shut.

Not for long however.

"I didn't either"

Rosa couldn't help but release a dry, croaked chuckle "Heh…"

She quickly shook her bright red face, causing left over tears to fly from her face. After a quick, yet firm wipe of her face, she slowly approached the brown haired man.

Bucky seemed to take a careful step back, as though the firebender was still prepared to send a flaming fireball to his head. However, surprise came over his feeble mind at what happened next.

She put his hand on her shoulder.

It wasn't the most shocking event that could ever happen, hell, it wasn't even what Bucky expected in a million years from a bright face Rosa, yet, there her hand was. Right on his fleshly shoulder. Sitting there. It felt weird to say in the very least.

Like Rosa was congratulating a kid who actually hit a ball in a game of bad all, she gave Bucky's shoulder a few hearty pats, before her hand rested for an uncomfortable amount of time on his shoulder. Bucky noticed that clear once she even touched him, but that was a different story. Judging from the calmness from her puffy red eyes, she probably didn't notice a damn thing from her actions.

Seconds later, Bucky couldn't help but feel...drained, tired, just a bit, but noticeable enough to the ex-Winter Soldier. It was like with every giving second, his body would seem to sag lower and lower, ready to collapse straight into the ground. At the same time...Rosa's thin fingers dig deeper into his shoulder. Much deeper.

By the time he snapped his head up, it was already too late. Rosa's hands softly pulsated that bright orange color, and visibly crawled up her hand and disappeared into her the sleeve of her jacket. Her face was still that bright cherry red, but her eyes changed. They were absolutely filled with that orange as bright as the sunset. It was clear now.

Like a battery, she was draining him.

Rosa couldn't pry off her hand off his shoulder, no matter how much she tried. Her hand was super glued onto the warmness that softly pulsated through her body. Her orange soaked eyes stared blankly into the distance, as though the former homeless man was nothing more than battery, willingly giving her sweet heat. It felt like a soft blanket that crawled right through her veins, calming her, telling her everything was better. And she wanted more. Much more.

Bucky tried jerking his fist around, but no matter how hard he tried, they became useless, floppy weapons that only seemed to make the firebender dig her claws further into his flesh. Knowing that his effort was utterly useless, he stuck his hand right beside his sleepy body, and slowly took one step back. Right as he backed up however, his tired body lost footing, causing him and the listless firebender to crash into the ground.

Bucky's head smacked violently into the hard pavement, causing his head to jerk right up again and crash back into the ground. Rosa slid right over his body, causing her iron grip to be ripped right off his body. Suddenly, her hand tensed up into a tight ball, causing the bright color to disappear right from her hand. Her sunset orange eyes faded back into her familiar light brown as she blinked right back into reality. The...odd reality, so to say.

 _What the hell happened?_ Rosa thought, squinting at the ground.

She didn't remember one goddamn thing, not one at all. All that she remembered was touching his shoulder then...orange. It had to have been her. She would have remembered attacking someone in the very least, even Bucky.

She glanced beside her, causing he eyes to widen in surprise. There, Bucky laid on the ground, his eyes loosely shut with this thick brown hair in his face. She gave his shoulders a few hearty shoves, but like a rag doll, nothing happened. It would singly bounce back right into place like any other individual who was knocked right out.

"What did I do..." Rosa whispered to herself in absolute shock. Moments later, she sighed and got to her feet. It was like any of her fears, terror, anger from minutes ago was washed straight away and forgotten. So, with a grunt, she plucked him right off the ground, and flopped him right over his shoulder.

She didn't know why she still wanted to help this man, even if he was the Winter Soldier. Logic said she shouldn't have. Her past said she shouldn't have. Hell, her neck said she shouldn't have. Yet...her gut said differently.

It said Bucky was Bucky. Not the Winter Soldier.

* * *

 **Thank you guest for your review!**

 **So...that was a rollercoaster of a chapter. It was a little hard to write in terms of how Bucky and Rosa would act and react to some things, but I think I got it down(hopefully...)**

 **Anyways, I start college next week! (I just graduated high school a week ago. It's a long story...) So, this may change updating a little, MAY. I won't know until I actually, well, start attending classes and getting homework, but I honestly don't think it'll change my updates at all. In about a week I'll post what will happen on my profile, so if your intrested to know how soon I'll post the next chapter of this fic, look out for it.**

 **Anyways, hope you enjoyed! Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	16. (On to) Better Things (And Ways)

Bucky's eyes snapped open.

His hands to jerk to the side. His hands, or rather fists, smacked right into the seat cushion of the car. When Bucky's clear blue eyes blinked back into reality however, he realized why his hands were in fists. His beloved black glove and missing entirely, revealing his metallic, cold hand, wrapped tightly with a strand of thin rope.

It certainly snapped him wide awake

It didn't take him much to sit straight up in the back seat of the car, causing Rosa briefly glance at him.

"So, you're finally awake, huh?" Rosa said, raising her brow. With no automatic response, she shrugged, and continued driving.

Bucky slowly lifted his bound hands and softly replied "What the hell is this?"

The firebender clenched her fingers into the wheel.

"I couldn't risk another accident," She said bluntly "especially when I'm driving. Then I'll crash again, one of us will fly out like a sack of potatoes, and we'll start that entire shitshow again"

"Do you have a knife?"

She shook her head "I think you can snap out of that yourself. I just tied it around once"

Bucky sighed, and stared at his tied hands again. In one violent motion, he yanked his arms apart, causing the rope to split and unravel on itself. Finally untied, he simply chucked the rope aside.

"I mean, you have that cyborg arm of yours..."

She whispered ever so quietly, as though the only sound that came from her was a slight whistle piecing through her teeth. Or, at least in her own mind.

Rosa didn't have a clue of what to expect from that giant, metal arm of his. Sure, she's never actually seen it, but everyone who bothered to go on the internet knew the Winter Soldier had whatever that metal was attached to his skin. It was his freaking trademark. The only thing she really knew that it packed serious punch.

Bucky quickly rubbed his metal arm under his coat, before he firmly tugged the sleeve.

He quickly changed the subject "What was that?"

"What was what?" Rosa reposed ever so innocently, as though she didn't have a clue of what he was talking about. In reality however, she knew exactly. Bucky knew hat enough, judging from her heavily furrowed brows and tempered lip. It was a clear sign of guilt to the ex-Winter Soldier.

"You know what I'm talking about"

 _"What did I do..."  
_  
The memory was as fresh in Rosa's mind as day old groceries, considering it did just happen only hours ago. She was still as stumped as ever, so what the hell was she supposed to tell Bucky? She glanced down to her lightly paled hand, and and proceeded to quickly turn it into a fist, so she wouldn't cause another car crash that would sent them both flying from the window of the car, she quickly stuck her hand back onto the wheel.

She sighed "I don't know"

"You don't...know?" Bucky responded softly. His clear blue eyes snapped up to the rear view mirror, waiting for his response. Because even he couldn't buy that story.

"I'm telling the truth!" She exclaimed in disbelief "I just put my hand on your shoulder and...well, everything went to hell from there. I couldn't let go. It was like..."

"Like what?"

"Comfort. Warmness. Safety. It was like hugging my family. It felt so good through my veins just..." She paused, realizing she was trailing off a bit too much "Um, sorry about that"

"I think I was...taking your warmth?" Rosa said ever so questionably "I'm sure there's some kind of science that explains it"

"You were draining me" The long haired man explained in his own words.

"I guess that's another way of putting it…I really don't know. After I...drained you, I felt great, oddly enough, too. The closest thing I could really put it to is like taking a crap ton of pain killers and other feel good medicine"

"What happened?"

"You fell, I gasped, and then I stuffed you into a car. You've been out for a while. So long I thought of dumping you at a hospital"

"Don't" He replied coldly.

She scoffed "Yeah, yeah, I know. It was just a thought that crossed my mind. Besides, I wouldn't want to cause a few heart attacks by dropping off the Winter Soldier in a hospital. Then that would be a huge problem"

Bucky only nodded. With that, he drew his blank eyes back to his cupped hands.

"Do you ever think about where you came from?"

Bucky snapped up his head and stared forward "What?"

"Yeah, you know, where you were raised and stuff, before you became..." She pause, choosing her words carefully. She didn't want to say the Winter Soldier, and the fist of HYDRA didn't seem like a viable option either "something else "

The ex-Winter Soldier paused in thought. With all the shit going on in his life with the firebender, he couldn't really remember the last time he thought about Steve. Like, really thought about Captain America. Enough to crack open his journal and write about it. At this point, he couldn't tell if that was good or bad. Probably bad. At the amd time...his past was always on his mind, one way or another. Small things, like remembering what an old phone looked like. What magazines were like compared to the present. How cars were. Things like that.

"All the time" he responded ever effortlessly.

Rosa shrugged "Makes sense. You're like...in your 90's now aren't you?"

"I...never thought of that" Bucky bluntly responded. Wow. He was a geezer. Like the guys back in the old days he and Steve used to help around. Or make fun of.

He chuckled.

"What?"

"Nothing," his mouth slowly formed into a frown "It's...the past"

"Oh"

And so another long, thick silence stood in between them. For the first time, the silence actually felt...wrong to Bucky. It felt so off, as though it wasn't ever meant to be there. It was probably what Rosa felt. However, it wasn't for the reasons the firebender always felt. It was something dramatically different.

There was one question that still bugged Bucky's mind. It was an unanswered question he knew would surely make the firebender squirm in her own skin. But, it was a question that needed a serious answer.

The question of both of their fates.

"What are we gonna do now?" Bucky asked.

Rosa actually chuckled "We're going to the hideout, safehouse, whatever you want to call it. We're almost there, anyways. We're a few hours away from the border, and probably another hour of driving off road after that"

"You're telling me you forgot about...before?"

Rosa immediately frowned and clenched her fingers tighter into the wheel. It was probably the thing she most wanted to avoid talking about when Bucky snapped awake. Even more than when she accidently knocked his lights out with a simple pat on the shoulder. It was like small talk to her: uncomfortable and inescapable.

She wanted to give herself a good slap in the face for losing control like that, even punch herself right in the chin. She couldn't remember the last time she felt like that. It was like she was nothing more than a ravaged, weak animal snarling its problems away, even though it knows it'll be a fight it doesn't win. She hated how that feeling took control of her mind and body, and made her into her own human puppet succumbed to her own emotions.

Wait, she did remember the last time she had that feeling. She remembered exactly when she was that way before. Because it was a feeling of confusion, hopelessness, anxiety.

And most of all, she was afraid. Like she was when she could only be a subject.

Rosa gave a deep sigh, and pulled over to the side of the road. She ran her tense fingers across her face and dug them into her dark brown hair. All that was left in those light brown eyes of hers was blank darkness.

"Let me ask you a question first," Rosa replied weakly "What do you think of...HYDRA?"

Bucky let silence fill the void between them. He glanced down and furrowed his brows in thought. It was only seconds later, in surprise to the firebender, that the ex-Winter Soldier had an answer.

"It's a part of me," Bucky said bluntly "They're still inside my head. Whether I like it or not"

"And...do you like it?"

"No. I want it outta me"

Rosa lightly nodded, before she drew her light brown eyes to the window. Her blank eyes watched as cars raced down the highway beside her, oblivious to the probably two most wanted criminals of the hour. She cynically chuckled. They were criminals. They were criminals on the run alright. When she thought of a criminal she thought of bloodthirsty serial killers who got a thrill when they sliced someone's neck. The kind of person who had no moral ground, and did what they pleased. Not necessarily a psycho, but just a person who has a cold, unemotional stare when they dig a knife into someone's chest.

Like the Winter Soldier. But not Bucky. Or even herself.

She released one more, deep, tired sigh, and shoved those excess thoughts out of her head.

"I've had a...rough history with HYDRA, to summarize," The firebender weakly replied "They didn't create who I am today with, you know...my powers, but...they finished it. If they made you the weapon, they made me the experiment"

She swallowed "I don't know what you've been through with them, but I think you know well enough what they take away with each needle. Each electrical shock. Each slap. Each scream. Each body. Each…" Rosa paused, knowing she was trailing off a bit too far off

"I know" Bucky replied. She knew exactly what she was talking about, even if she refused to say the word. It took away something not even the war could do. It took away something that was integral to each person in the world. It was something every person on earth was born with.

Humanity. HYDRA took away people's humanity.

"Anyways…" She swallowed another giant lump of nervousness in her throat "It was the most painful years of my life, both physically and mentally. It was nothing that a 10 year old should ever experience. They did want to turn me into a weapon, they talked about that all the time. It wasn't anything like you, I think. They, um...they needed a weapon that could be inconspicuous and could get into tight spots. Kids like me at that time were the top contenders. They could be formed to believe in whatever they needed to to survive. They needed someone who could infiltrate and...explode"

"A...suicide bomber?" The ex-Winter Soldier realized.

She nodded softly, and wiped her growing red eyes "Yeah. Without the _suicide_ part. They wanted someone they could use over and over again, and who wouldn't have criminal charges if they were caught. They could be used and disposed of if necessary. That why HYDRA used goddamn _children_ "

She sniffed as a single tear rolled and fell down her face. She thought she could wipe it out of the way before Bucky could see it, but it was all too late. He saw that hot, steamy tear as clear as day.

"For a while, I thought I could just forget it ever happened, but its hard. Especially when I have this on my hand" With that, she slowly slipped off her only right glove, and exposed its pale, naked flesh. There, there sat the three little numbers, in what seemed like it was written in faded ink. She carefully cupped her hand, and revealed the mark the defined her for so many years to Bucky.

 _384_

She glanced at the glove on the passenger seat, but simply left it there. Instead, she lead her hands back to the steering wheel, and gripped it tightly.

"You have your mark, I have mine" Rosa mumbled under her breath.

"If HYDRA did this to you, why didn't you go?"

She paused, and crossed her mind over the countless answers. Yet, one seemed just right.

"Because," the light brown haired girl turned around the clinged onto the head seat "You were honest with me. It means you trust me, whether you like it or not"

Bucky was about to open his mouth to protest, but kept his lips tightly pursued. Trust was word that shouldn't of been lightly thrown around, in his mind. It was something that needed to be fought for and earned.

Yet...Bucky couldn't feel but a bit trusting towards the firebender. Just a bit.

* * *

"This is it?"

The ex-Winter Soldier slowly slid out of the small car and slammed the door behind him. He glanced around the unknown place as raised his brow. He didn't have a clue where he was. Judging by Rosa's smile however, she knew exactly where they were. He hoped.

That loose grin stayed on as she jumped out of the car and scanned around the place "Yeah, this is it"

They were finally there. At the border.

A thick forest shielded the car, and surrounded a sturdy wire gate that divided North Dakota and Canada. Sure, the air stunk of fresh trees and dirt, but it was the forest. The air was a bit on the cooler side, considering it was North Dakota. Even if it felt like a rabbit animal was about to burst out of the trees and tackle then to the ground, Rosa could hardly contain her excitement. Bucky couldn't have felt more relieved.

"We got a couple options," Rosa explained "We could just sneak over here and walk the entire way, keeping in mind it's an hour drive from the border to the safe house. We could also go to border control and try to get in that way with the car, but we'd be caught easily if we did that. We don't even have passports"

Bucky paused in thought. Either option seemed sufficient enough. One would take much longer, which meant more time for the government to coax them out of hiding. Then again, the other option was literally sneaking across the border right in front of their faces.

She stuck her hands on her hips "Then again, I'm open to suggestions"

Bucky glanced at Rosa "Let's do border control"

"Alright, ok," she sighed "I was thinking the same anyways. It's easier to track down, that way. I really don't want get lost right now"

"We need a plan"

"I know. Got anything?"

He paused, then dug his hand into his pocket. What he brought out certainly made Rosa's eyes squint in confusion. There, Bucky slowly pulled out a few small, silver balls. He carefully shuffled them in his fleshy, metal hand, as though he was afraid of even touching them with his metal one.

"Uh, what is that?" Rosa asked.

"Old HYDRA equipment. It'll be our way out of here"

She craft scheduler head in nervousness "That seems a bit risky there, Bucky. If it's old, we won't know if it'll work"

"It will"

"How long has it been since...D.C? Hell, I don't even know when the last time you've been under HYDRA"

Bucky pursed his lips, and dropped the silver balls in his pocket "Can you trust me?"

"Hm?" Rosa blinked, hardly believing her ears.

He sighed "You said I trust you"

Rosa paused, and crossed her arms "So, you not gonna deny it?

Bucky ignored that last part "Then trust me"

"...Fine. You win," She sighed, before she slid back into the car "I hope you got a good plan with that, because border control isn't very kind to people like us"

"Criminals"

"Yeah...criminals"

It seemed like only minutes passed by before the ex-Winter Soldier and the firebender finally made it to border control. The trip before was a complete blur to the two. For Rosa, it was just complete wave of anxiety that hit her. She didn't ask much about what Bucky had planned, but she sure hoped it would work. Bucky on the other hand...was busy making his plan.

Near the edge of the gates, he carefully rolled his silver ball into an empty check point, before he walked over back to the car. Rosa nervously tapped her fingers against the steering wheel as Bucky slid back into the passenger seat beside her.

He buckled himself in "We have 10 minutes to get across"

The only thing Rosa could so was nod and drive in line. She didn't know how to feel at all. On one hand she felt as nervous as ever. On the other hand, she felt...hopeful?

That same hope however faded away once she drove closer and closer and closer. She couldn't help but feel a bit more anxious as the officer let each car drive across the divider and into the country that was Canada. Each time a car passed by, she glanced at the clock tick down and down. A little too slow she thought. Much too slow than what Bucky said would be good.

Then she finally made it up to the checkstand. With 2 minutes left. As that wasn't enough to give her heart attack.

She reluctantly glanced up to the border control officer. With this sunglasses, a bushy mustache, and a stern frown, she knew small talk wasn't the way out of this situation. He probably lifted weights every morning, judging from those thick arms of his.

"ID and passport please" The officer asked for what seemed like the 100th time in his career,

Rosa smiled politely and shuffled through the glove box, and let her fingers trail around random stuff "Yes, yes, of course sir"

With genuianly nothing to show, she anxiously chuckled like a woman who simply misplaced her items "Oh, I guess it isn't there," She turned to Bucky, and let her fake, forced smile fall "Cliff, could you look through the other glove box?"

Bucky went along and nodded, before she randomly shuffled through the nearly empty glove box in front of him.

"It's a nice day today, isn't it sir?" Rosa asked.

"Yeah" the officer replied bluntly. Like her voice was nothing more than a noise, he glanced back to his thick clipboard.

"What are you planning to do after your shift?"

He shrugged.

"Oh, a free schedule is good too, I guess…" Rosa trailed off. She nearly jumped from her seat once the officer glanced from his clipboard back into the car.

"Sir, you're taking a mighty long time there. Is everything alright?" The officer asked, as he carefully peaked into the car. Bucky immediately stiffened his hand, and glanced up.

Rosa simply chuckled like a bubbly girlfriend and leaned over towards Bucky "We must have misplaced our wallets, don't worry we'll find them sir"

"I wasn't asking you, young lady, I was asking him" He replied ever so bluntly, as he pointed to Bucky.

Bucky simply stared into the car console, before he slowly shut it and looked up. He didn't know how much time they had left until the plan was completed. He just hoped their was enough time left.

"I-"

 _Boom_

Suddenly, a huge explosion ripped through the checkstand beside them. The empty stand was consumed in flames in seconds, and billowed thick, black smoke into the air. Rosa's eyes widened as screams of terror filled the air, running form the erupting flames, the officer immediately whispered a few curse words under his breath, before he rushed down to the hot, tall flames.

Rosa snarled and glared at Bucky with a deep, lazer-like stare "They _explode_?! Why the hell didn't you tell me!?"

The ex-Winter Soldier only kept his blank, unassuming stare on "You didn't ask"

"So wha-"

"We should get going" He cut through her sentence like a knife. Rosa opened her mouth, ready to give him a piece of her damn mind, but quickly closed it. As much as she wanted to blab on and on about the silver ball that exploded everything in sight, that wouldn't be a long distraction. Time was precious.

So, with a sigh, she pulled the car back into Drive "We'll talk about this when we get there"

And with that, Rosa slammed the accelerator, and crossed into sweet, safe, Canada.

She felt a load off her shoulders already.

* * *

Bucky scanned the wilderness that surrounded the car. Out the window, Thick, dark trees surrounded the rocky path. A stream of light peaked through the leaves in little patches, dinly lighting the forest floor. The sedan rocked and jerked around, not suited for the rocky road at all. It felt like the tires were about to fall of at any minute to him, anyways.

As long as he made it to the safe house in one piece, the car could fall apart in his hands for all he cared.

Suddenly, the forest opened up into a small, grassy opening, surrounded by another all of tall, thick trees. What caught his eye however wasn't the oddly beautiful light that glistened down, nor the rover that slowly flowed next to them. It was something man-made rather. A gate, to be exact.

In between two thick dark trees sat a giant, iron gate. On the verge of rusting into complete dust. It seemed like if Rosa or Bucky dared to even lay their finger on the gate, it would crumble at the seams and tumble over.

Rosa carefully parked the dented, scratched up car to the side, next to a large, tall tree that seemed to tower over the rest.

"This is it? Bucky asked again, as he slowly slid from the car and silently slammed the door shut. Rosa simply left his question hanging. Instead, she began to wander around, as though she was curious of its wonders. She strolled on to the tallest tree of the bunch, hooked right up to the iron, rusted gate. She carefully brushed some thick, old shrubbery from the trunk, and revealed its only secret. There, drilled into the tree was a thick, metal plate. It was softly rusted a bright orange on its edges. And had what exactly what she was looking for.

The symbol of HYDRA.

"Yeah. We're here"

* * *

 **Thank you for both of the guests for you're reviews!**

 **(*Just as quick note, please don't ask about other for in my other stories that don't relate to it. The chapter will get done when it's done. I've never had it happen before so...I'll let it off easy for now)**

 **Wow...we're almost to 100 followers...I honestly can't believe it...thank you to all who followed and favorited, or even bothered to read this fic! So, I guess it would be appropriate to say that the 100th follower gets a shout out! I'll be watching very closely this time around.**

 **So, we finally made it to the safe house! This chapter was planned out from the start, so, for me personally, this is sort of a transition from pervious chapters to adventures in the safe house.**

 **Now, I wonder what Steve and Tony are up to...**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	17. (Is She a) Psycho Killer(?)

"Tony, hey Tony"

A faint voice tricked through the billionaire's ears. Although it was strong and forceful, the sound simply went through one ear and out the other.

That montecristo that he assumed Steve whipped up for him knocked him right out. Sure, it wasn't the best meal he's ever had in his life, but a full stomach and 3 hours of sleep would do that to a guy. Especially when he was still trying to hack through the laptop.

Tony's eyes fluttered open as he felt hands dig into the flesh off his arm, and rock him ever so slightly. His tired hands drew to the open laptop, until he felt the top and closed it shut.

"I'm up Cap" Tony yawned. He ran his hands roughly through his face and shook his head awake. When the billionaire looked up however, it wasn't the good ol' man with a plan who stared back at him. It was someone much more familiar.

"If it's Steve you're looking for, he's not here" Rhodey chuckled.

"Mornin' Rhodey" Tony mumbled lazily, giving a few hearty pats on Rhodey's shoulder before he collapsed back in his seat.

Rhodey scoffed and leaned against the table "Nice try. It's 1:00 in the afternoon"

"Oh. Where's Steve?"

"Off training with the others," Rhodey replied, as he fled to the kitchen "Want a cup?"

"Make it black, like my soul is currently feeling right about now...please"

Rhodey nodded.

The billionaire released a quick sigh, before he pulled his back straight once again "How's the capsicle been treating you?"

He shrugged carelessly, as though Tony's question was irrelevant to him "Nothing special, Tony. There's been a few team exercises here and there, but Cap's been training Maximoff more than anyone else"

Rhodey dumped a cup of water into the coffee machine and let it simmer along with the crushed coffee beans. Tony blankly stared at the machine as wisps of steam poured from the top, causing the rich, brown liquid that was coffee to drip into the cup. Rhodey just happened to grab his favorite cup: _I Heart Me_.

"The little _witch_?" Tony asked with a raised brow. Rhodey could practically feel the vengeance leaking out of his voice. It was obvious he wasn't over the whole mind control thing, especially when he saw his worst nightmare. It was a scar that wasn't going away anytime soon.

"Who else?" Rhodey shrugged. He slipped the mug filled with the rich liquid from the coffee machine, and slid it into the stupidity tired billionaire's hands.

"How's the kid fairing then?" Tony questioned "Considering she brainwashed the team and turned Banner into the Green Giant, I'm assuming she has everything under control?"

Rhodey paused and sighed "She's been having a tough time with her powers or whatever the hell the are. For a kid her age, she's not the most talkative girl in the world"

"Darn. I was just going to bring up fashion with her. I'm sure she'll go nuts over a fantastic Gucci purse" Tony sarcastically said.

"Well, not exactly," Rhodey chuckled lightly.

"...it's about Maximoff's brother, isn't it?" Tony blustered out. It was the most obvious route. He saw Piedro's bloodied, hole coveted body when he went back on the quinjet. He saw those empty, clear blue eyes of his, slightly glazed over. He saw the absolute shock frozen on his face, only to be washed away by embalming his body and sticking him six feet under.

"She may have those powers, but she's still a kid," Rhodey sighed "Maximoff seems to have a thing with Vision that's helping though"

"A thing?" Tony raised his brows "With the purple crayon?"

Multiple thoughts crossed through his head. Multiple things not so safe for work also crossed through his head as well.

Rhodey scoffed "Not that sort of THING Tony. They still don't know where their powers came from"

"It came from Thor's batshit crazy brother's staff"

"Right, but where did the staff come from?" Rhodey pointed out.

Tiny shrugged in agreement, then took a sip of his dark, bitter coffee. He knew the staff was alien, but that was the extent of everyone's knowledge. Even the long haired blond God couldn't track the exact whereabouts of where the staff came from. Just that it was an infinity stone now apart of Vision. Suddenly, a certain question curiously crawled into his mind. What would happen if...he happened to 'remove' the stone? For scientific purposes of course, along with his science buddy. Speaking of the scientist...

"By the way, what happened to Bruce?" Tony asked again "Last I heard he hitched a plane to Cancun or some place tropical"

"Can't find him yet. Romanoff's been looking around, with her connections or something, but nothing yet. Give it a couple weeks" Rhodey assured. Although it was totally reassuring, it was enough to make Tony visibly mumble positive words, then swallow those same words right back with coffee.

"Fair enough" Tony blankley answered back.

"So," Rhodey slid into a chair right next to his billionaire friend, and slapped the table gently with his wide open palms "What's Steve got you falling asleep on table for?"

Tony obviously shrugged, "Gee I don't know, torchering me by making me search for dead ends"

"That's one was to kill a man"

"Sure is buddy"

Rhodey let a smile form on his lips, causing him to shake his head "No, but really, why did Steve call you? It's been like, a more than a week since that robot of yours 'accidentally' destroyed the planet"

"Surprise, surprise, he's not giving a single solitary crap about it either," Tony shrugged "Not anymore, in the very least"

"Well between you and me" Rhodey carefully leaned into his ear, as though he was a teen girl whispering her crush "Been all locked up inside his room ever since Ultron rubbed him the wrong way. The only reason he got out was because of this...mission he's got you aboard on"

Tony's eyes flickered with curiosity. This was certainly news to the billionaire. The Steve he knew wasn't one to quell on things and drag them out for eternity. He simply got things done and went on to the next mission or project he had. Yet...he noticed how Captain Rogers' acted ever since Wanda took a little peek into his brain and manipulated it like putty. Although he refused to say anything about what he saw (Hell, no one else other than Tony himself peeped a word to the others of their experience with brain manipulation), Tony saw that darker side of Captain America. It was just a matter of pulling that part out into the light.

"Must have been Maximoff," Tony replied, and he glared into his half empty cup of coffee "Cognitive manipulation and all"

Rhodey shrugged in agreement "Makes sense. Did he share the details of what he saw?"

"No" Tony bluntly responded.

"Oh'" Rhodey paused "You still have a question to answer"

"And what would that be, Mr. Rhodes?" Tony replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"What's all of-" He waved his hands towards the laptop, where a little red cursor blinked inside a tiny box on the screen "this?"

Tony sighed, and buried his hands briefly into his face. Rhodey could tell the man was tired, if the dark circles under his eyes wasn't a sign enough. He knew Tony wasn't one to sleep in general, but he didn't want another incident, like the incident before his Malibu beach house was blown to bits.

"I'm guessing Rogers hasn't caught you up on all of-" Tony mockingly waved his hands in front of his computer "this?"

"He told me something about a kid with flaming hands?" Rhodey responded doubtfully.

"Yep," Tony pulled out a tablet from under the kitchen counter, and swiped feverishly around, searching for a specific video "Flaming hands here and Steve's old friend with the same first name as yours have been up to trouble"

He pulled up the body camera clip to Rhodey. The military man leaned in closer in curiosity as the video began to play. There, he saw Alvarez with her palms spread out, in front of a giant wall of fire. The agent who shot at the firebender were disappointed as their puny bullets melted on contact with the bright orange, flickering flames.

The camera violently moved, revealing the ex-Winter Soldier sending a violent punch to an agents face. The agents collapsed on his knees, and slammed into the floor only seconds later. With a fuzzy, blank look upon the dark haired man's furry face, he lunged at the body camera. The only thing that was left was a frozen view of Bucky's stone blue eyed, before the footage turned into black and white static.

"What the hell…" Rhodey muttered. His hands carefully wrapped around the tablet, letting him click around for other evidence about the adventure of Alvarez and Barnes.

"The fire kid, Alvarez is her name," Tony explained "She's wanted for a different offense, setting cars and people on fire, like Barnes is for, you know, being the Winter Soldier"

"This doesn't help, doesn't it?"

"Legally, they're both in deep crap at this point in time" Tony replied with a yawn, as he leaned back into his chair.

Rhodey swiped through picture after picture, revealing photos of Bucky and Rosa alike. One revealed a picture of Bucky before his mind control days, dressed in his classic World War II uniform and all.

"So, I'm guessing the only reason Steve took this job was because of his old brainwashed war friend?" He asked.

"He won't admit it but," Tony shrugged "Yeah. Why else?"

"Fair enough. He should be glad the entire world doesn't see the 'selfish' side of Captain America"

"And why is that?" Tony raised his brow.

"Well, someone on his position is more of a role model than a person. Remember the kid who wanted you to sign his drawing, and you stumbled out of the bar faster than some intoxicated guy?"

He groaned, and rubbed his hand over his face "You had to bring that up again?"

"Look, I'm just trying to make a point," Rhodey explained "People put individuals like you, Steve, Banner, in high regard. They basically put them on a pedestal next to celebrity status. They think you're some sort of weird, powerful god or something"

"That's-"

"Not a literal god, not like Thor," Rhodey corrected "I'm saying like a distance sort of relationship. They only think you can do good and nothing else, trust me on this, I know from just being your friend. But, as easily as that's gained, it can be ruined too. Then no one can trust you to be the hero anymore. What I trying to say is, if the public finds out that Captain America is trying to save the Winter Soldier, the guy who carried out countless assassinations and is virtually blamed for the Triskelion falling, the Avengers are done"

"Don't you think that's going a bit far Rhodey?" Tony asked doubtfully.

"The public is but stronger than you think, Tony. Those a guys will find out your part in it eventually. Your lucky that the news hasn't been released about your part in Ultron yet"

Ultron. Right. Even the billionaire knew that the news of his part in creating and destroying Ultron would spread sooner or later. He's just realized he's only been showcased in the 'destruction' part of that situation. The consequences of that haven't been realized just yet, he knew that well enough. It could actually admit it was his fault. Sort of.

So, with no other words, he shrugged, and sipped obliviously at his coffee.

Another swipe of the tablet revealed Rosa, unsmiling in a waitress uniform, dress and all. With the next swipe, another video appeared. He watched as a thick cylinder of flames escaped from her hand and smothered a car in flames. He watched as a huge explosion ripped through the pathetic car, consuming it in blistering, unbearable heat. He watched as the fire kid took a long, tired stare at her hand, before she hopped over a fence and disappeared from view.

Tony glanced over his shoulder, eying the video "Yeah, that's it"

"That's just insane," Rhodey replied in a mixture of shock and awe "The kid can do this?"

Rhodey mindlessly swiped from picture to picture, nearly in awe of the video. It wasn't the most destruction he's seen before, Ultron took the cake for that, but it all seemed unfeeling. It looked like Alvarez was just getting a chore done rather than taking someone's life and leaving carnegie along with it too. It seemed so...lifeless.

It seemed so...familiar.

"Hey Tony," Rhodey set the tablet flat on the counter "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"What would that be?" Tony raised his brow in curiosity.

"AIM. Killian. Extremis"

Tony sighed "The dead man himself told me it was never stable for that kind of power. The same thing Alvarez was doing would make Killian burst completely into flames. The structure of Extremis was never right for that"

"I don't know man," Rhodey shrugged "An enhanced individual with pyrokinesis would have been under the radar ages ago. You can't hide buring lawns from the government for very long"

"It looks like a far stretch there Rhodes" Tony doubtfully replied. There could have been a few explanations of the powers she possessed. Freak accident. Other experimentation. Hell, she could have been simply born with it. He wouldn't have believed all of the stuff rambling in his head years ago, yet that all changed with the Iron Man suit. Someone did try to melt him out of it before. Or rather, in it.

"I know, but what if? What if someway, it was stabilized to do all of this batshit crazy...shit?" Rhodey questioned in curiosity "You got any pictures of the girl when she was younger in this tablet of yours?"

"Sort of," Tony groaned as he slid the tablet into his hands "Kid went off the radar in 2000 and didn't pop up again until 2004"

"But before 2000?"

"A couple"

Tony flipped through what seemed like countless old polaroid photos in his tablet. They were all the same; just a smiling, little girl with a few teeth missing, dressed in a small flower dress. Nothing out of the ordinary at all.

"The kids parents?" Rhodey asked.

The billionaire shrugged "I don't have a clue. I'm guessing the CIA is still sniffing around. Or, they're currently six feet under"

"Or they might not even exist" he pointed out as well, earning an agreeable shrug from Tony.

"Dead ends here and there," Tony sighed "Once I crack this laptop open, which I will, I have a good feeling that our questions will be answered"

Rhodey curiously slid his fingers across the edge of the computer, and titled it towards his body. There, he saw codes upon codes scrolling down in a blink on an eye. All he saw was a jumble of letters and words flickering about, with the occasional jump.

"I should've asked you what the hell this was for in the first place," Rhodey chuckled dryly "I thought it was Stark tech or-"

His sentence was cut off in a snap once Tony flipped the laptop around, revealing a mess of tattered stickers on its cover. Everything from a cross to a big fat middle finger was plastered against the metallic shell on the computer.

A mocking smirk crossed Tony's face "You know how much I adore art"

Rhodey simply I bored his last little snarky comment and squinted his eyes "Now you're just making me even more confused..."

"I thought I would," The billionaire slid the computer back to his face "Long story short, the kid who spits fire had a buddy who knew his way around a computer or two. He puts up a fight, but this hunk of metal is going to be cracked wide open. Eventually"

"How-"

Rhodey was interrupted by a loud, slicing beep that cut him off like a sharp, hot knife to a stick of butter. Before he could say another word, Tony whipped the computer right in front of his face and started to frantically type away. He looked so intense to Rhodey, which was odd, even to his good friend. His brown eyes were practically glued onto the screen, along with his fingers.

He glanced at his rather shiny, normal watch "Hey FRIDAY, bring up, the code history and edits to it"

" _From which dates, Boss?"_ The virtual voice ran back in a smooth as buttery tone.

Tony shrugged "Surprise me"

" _Sending history from May 8th 2014..."_

Suddenly, the computer flashed against, and revealed an entire line of codes. Colors like green and red appeared on the screen, causing Tony to type away once more.

"There we go..." Tony mumbled "And...we're in"

With the click of a mouse, the mountain of codes disappeared in the blink of an eye. Through the darkness of the screen, a red, circular symbol appeared right in the middle, along with small, red lettering.

 _Rising Tide_

"What the hell is Rising Tide?" Rhodey mumbled under his breath. Tony seemed to ignore his question, and instead watched as the laptop booted itself up. Seconds later, the home screen appeared. His eyes flicked in shock as a mountain of folders and files sat right on the screen, labeled incorrectly. Most of them, at least. The files he could read only caused to widen his eyes in shock.

"Rhodey, could you get Steve? I think we got bigger fish to fry now. Bigger than the girl" Tony trailed off.

"What's wrong?" Rhodey asked as he leapt out from his chair.

"You know how I said the kid's friend knew his way around computers? I may have just given him less credit than he deserves. He's got information all right"

He clicked a file, labeled 'CAPTAIN_AMERICA'. A mess of documents and photos appeared, showing the red white and blue man across security cameras and from what seemed like old army shots from back in the day. He hesitantly clicked on a document, revealing the case history of Steve Rogers, right when he was melted out if the ice.

"He's got information on us"

* * *

 **Thank you guest for your review!**

 **Well, I hope this chapter gave you an insight on Steve and Tony (Well, I guess more Tony and Rhodey).**

 **100 follower shoutout** **is still going on! Remember, my 100th follower will get a shout out! I'm very close right now! I'll try to look as carefully as I can to pick out the exact reader.** **Well, it's back to Rosa and Bucky next chapter, but in the safe house. I've been waiting to write this part for so long, so I'm pretty excited.**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


	18. Home (Sort of?)

**Before I start, I just wanted to thank kotono3 for breaking me into 100 followers! Thank you so much not only to them, but to all of you who followed! I never thought this many people would be interested in my story. I hope you all stay along for the ride **

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"...What is this place?"

Bucky finally managed to spit those few words out. As he peeled out the window into his new surroundings. After melting the gate shut (To ward off lost tourists and the government, Rosa said), the two runaways slipped back into the car and followed the winding road.

An open, grassy plane laid between the dirt road, with thick blades of grass that visibly danced around the wind. Tall, monstrous trees stood around the plain like a little makeshift valley. Even with all of the nature that surrounded the two, not even bird was in sight. All there was was the cool, forest air and the slight sound of a trickle of a river.

Rosa uncomfortably stretched out her fingers across the steering wheel, as though the question itself was enough to throw herself out of the. With a quick sigh, she forced those feelings back in the depths of her mind.

"An old HYDRA hideout," Rosa said bluntly "I know what your thinking, I either lead you into a trap, or HYDRA's going to stumble in here. I honestly don't think the D.C incident destroyed those bastards once and for all. They're like cockroaches"

"I thought the latter" Bucky quietly responded, refusing to meet her light brown eyes.

"And I don't blame you. Trust me, they're not coming," The firebender assured "They have some kind of policy that they have to abandon a safe house 20 years after its registered. It's obvious because they lets this place rot and rust"

"Oh" He replied with a slight shrug.

"I thought HYDRA would teach a guy like you about that. I just know because that's what I heard"

In an instant, Bucky drew his eyes down to his exposed, rough hands and clenched his thumb close to his fist. Whatever HYDRA told him via protocol was stuck behind the Winter Soldier, the actual Winter Soldier just a few words away from being unlocked. Sure, some memories of his...actions were just the surface thoughts on his mind. Others...belonged to the Winter Soldier. That included mission details.

He swallowed, and glanced straight up "I don't remember"

"Oh..." Rosa replied ever so awkwardly. She gave a slight cough, before she locked her eyes firmly on the dirt path again.

"How did you hear about this place?" Bucky quietly asked.

"Because I used it, when I, um..." The firebender paused, and released a well needed sigh "When I escaped. It's ironic, really. I ran away from HYDRA, and ended up just coming back into HYDRA's arms. I've used it a few times ever since"

"What happened?" Bucky mumbled.

"...I don't wanna talk about it. It's in the past, so it's gonna stay there" Rosa cut through his curiosity like a knife. She opened her mouth in attempt to defend herself, but snapped it shut in seconds. She didn't need to defend her actions. Bucky knew that well enough.

"Anyways," Rosa quickly changed the subject "How's your shoulder feeling? I haven't taken a look at it for a while"

Bucky gently trailed his metallic, silver fingers across his murdered shoulder, feeling every little bump, crevasse, and abnormality that bullet created. Sure, it was pulled out, but even with his fast regeneration, he knew it was bound to leave some kind of scar. At least it wasn't on his face.

"It's fine" Bucky bluntly replied.

"No, really," the firebender pushed "You don't have to act all stoic and pretend there isn't a goddamn thing wrong on the world. I don't know how fast you heal, considering what HYDRA did to you, but it's gotta hurt. I have fast healing too, but small paper cuts are still a bitch. Honest, how does it feel?"

The ex-Winter Soldier once again drew his fingers across the bumps and crevasse that hid under his thin shirt. Triggered by nothing by touch, a stinging sensation stunned his shoulder slightly. It wasn't enough to make him groan or moan, but it was enough to cause him to dig his teeth into his inner lip.

"I've been better," Bucky broke his silence "I'll be alright"

Rosa opened her mouth to protest his lackluster answer, but immediately shut it. She knew that answer was much better than his 'it's fine' or 'it doesn't matter'. That was probably as much as she would get out of him at this point in time. But, it was some kind of progress.

"That's good," Rosa shrugged "After we get settled and everything, I'll take another peak. It's about time we change those bandages, anyways"

All Bucky did was nod.

Rosa drove the car into another thick line of trees, buying the vehicle within shadows and spotty darkness. Around a sharp bend, the safe house revealed itself. Surrounded by thick, rich plains stood a small, one story little abode. Built with stone, wood, and metal, it was a simple and sturdy refuge, large enough to house the two American runaways and small enough it hide itself from potential threats. It simply looked like a remote cabin made fishing and hunting trips. Nothing awfully suspicious.

"Here we are," Rosa said, as she slammed the car door shut. With a smirk, she breathed in the fresh, forest air "It's a beaut, isn't it?"

The ex-Winter Soldier carefully examined the little safe house from afar, studying every little detail that HYDRA crafted into their temporary home. To the naked eye, it looked like any other house: cozy and unsuspecting. To Bucky however, the details were everything. An extra door from the kitchen. A door to under the house. A large window in the attic. Highly flammable materials that made the house. The list went on and on for Bucky. He knew one thing, however.

HYDRA loved their comfort.

Rosa walked up the chipped stone steps "If I remember correctly, everything is powered by propane, so we might have to go into town for that later. The tank is near the...river, I think. Water is supplied the river and runs into a tank outside the bedrooms. That I actually remember"

"Food?" Bucky asked.

"There's a small garden just up the stone path. Everything is probably as dead as hell, so we'll have to get seeds or something. For other things...we'll have to go into town. Unless you want to eat rabbit and deer while we're here"

He carelessly shrugged.

"For now, I guess we'll have to live on spam. I know I gave you a hard time for it before, but I didn't know it'd pay off this much" Rosa admitted. She dug through her pockets and pulled out a pair of slightly rusted keys. With a simply turn, the door creaked open and revealed the innards of the safe house.

Even in the entrance, a simple, but ugly printed couch stood right in front of a heavily dusty T.V, rounded out and nearly grey from the blanket of dust that lined it. A few dirty tables and chairs were shoved to the side, in need of a good cleaning, or even perhaps a good hosing down. Sure, equally ugly wallpaper lined the walls like grandma's old kitchen (and it smelled like her too...), but Rosa couldn't complain too much. She had a roof over her head and a bed. If she had internet it would be perfect.

"Let's get our stuff and unpack," Rosa thought "I think I'll be able to make something tasty with your spam afterwards"

Bucky nodded in agreement, and headed for the car once more. With nothing more than a hefty black bag and a few plastic bags to his name, he quickly shuffled from the car to the nearest bedroom. Right when he opened the bedroom door, he caught a strong whiff of the forest air, dirt and all. He quickly scrunched his nose, and hurled his stuff into the small, plaid sheets. Although a small layer of dust coated the sheets, and everything around it, he knew a quick whack of the sheets would clean them enough. If not, he remembered Rosa packed some shampoo.

With a sigh, he zipped his backpack wide open and began to pull out his various small, black notebooks, packed to the brim with various thoughts. In a big handful, he yanked out at least 6 of those packed books, and spread them across the dusty dresser in one straight line. He knew when he wrote them simply by their condition. The one with a strand of tape across the cover was written while he found a permanent place to sleep. The one with the corner torn off was written when he found a couch for his little basement. The one coated in thick layers of tape was written only days after HYDRA and SHIELD alike fell.

He squinted his clear blue eyes, as drew them over to the notebook covered in yellowing tape. He knew its been awhile since cracked that particular one open. After he finished a notebook, he took a quick glance through it, then simply tossed it aside, and started the next one. He was a machine when it came to writing every little memory that popped in his head.

With nothing else to do, he picked up his first little black note poke, and began to thumb through it curiously. Various pictures of the man with the metal arm were scanned past by the ex-Winter Soldier. James Buchanan Barnes dressed himself in an army uniform, a hefty bag, and a smirk. That same lopsided smirk seemed to follow each picture in the notebook, fitted perfectly with the soldier.

No photos of Bucky were seen.

He stopped flipping as he nearly reached the end of the notebook, revealing a mess of words, lines, and various colored notes. Although no pictures were glued or taped on that particular page, the words were more than enough.

 _My name is (Name here) -James Buchanan Barnes(?)-Bucky. Today is August 20th, 2014. The man with the blond hair (The museum said his name was Steven Grant Rogers. What did I call him?-Steve I called him Steve), was on a run at 0600 across Lincoln memorial. He ran with another man (The man who flew through the air. Get name later). I think he ran a lot, in WW2 (Captain America IS Steven Grant Rogers-–Steve). He fought the bad guys (Nazis and HYDRA. Go to the library and pick up a book about them), along with James(Me). We-_

"Bucky?" Rosa's voice suddenly filled his ears. In an instant, Bucky snapped the little book shut, and raised his head at the curious brown haired firebender, who leaned against the frame of the door. He stared back at Rosa with curious, clear blue eyes, as though he was a kid caught in the act of stealing a cookie from the cookie jar.

Bucky swallowed that thick lump in his throat, and drew his eyes to the frame of the door. No matter how hard he tried to hide the surprise in his face, Rosa read him like an open book. Which was odd to her.

She raised a brow "Are you ok? You look a little shaken up there"

The brown haired man pursed his lips, and nodded slightly "Yeah"

He quickly shoved that particular journal back into his backpack, and tossed the entire bag into the closet. Without another word, he squeezed past Rosa, amusing her to stumble awkwardly to the side. She continued to raise her brow as Bucky shuffled away into the kitchen, like the recluse he was. She assumed all he did was hide away from human contact as often as he could, considering all they shared together was a motel room. And potential deaths of one another.

Not wanting to poke around his thoughts too much, she shrugged her own thoughts off, and started in trek into the kitchen. Before she left however, she couldn't help but notice those familiar black books, lined up like little toy soldiers on his dresser. Like he did back in D.C.

New thoughts filled her unusually empty head. Very interesting thoughts.

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 **Thank you guest for your review!**

 **Sorry about how short the chapter is today. I pretty much got across what I wanted in these few words, so...I didn't want to drag it on meaninglessly.**

 **In other news, I think I'm going to take a little break on this fic for now. Don't worry, it won't be very long, I'll probably just miss an update date or two, but I just need to go back and edit some chapters, for the sake of consistency and just making it better to my standards now. I hope you understand.**

 **I hope you enjoyed! Reviews are appreciated!**

 **\- X-Xepher-X**


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